Ultra-rare Bulgari Laguna Blu diamond sells for $25 million

A rare 11.16 carats fancy vivid blue diamond named the “Bulgari Laguna Blu” has fetched slightly more than $25 million at a Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels sale in Geneva.

The auction house brought the clock back to pre-pandemic times by achieving the best performance since May 2018, with total proceeds of over 76 million Swiss francs (about $85m).

Sotheby’s noted the exceptional blue diamond was put up for auction last and after a four-minute bidding battle between three telephone bidders and one bidder in the room, it eventually found a buyer on the phone.

The sale made of the Bulgari Laguna Blu the most expensive jewel ever sold in Geneva. It is also the largest blue diamond in a Bulgari jewel and the brand’s most valuable gem to ever be put up for sale

The Bulgari Laguna Blu is a rarity three times over, as it is a blue diamond, a jewel signed by Bulgari, and an unseen and unmodified gemstone.

The Italian jewelry maker set the oceanic-blue sparkler in a bespoke diamond necklace for actress Priyanka Chopra Jonas, and the stone then was removed and remounted onto a ring—similar to the house’s original 1970s design

The diamond was initially mounted as a ring by Bulgari for a special commission by the original owner. It was sold in 1970 and it’s now part of a necklace.