Formed at the core of the earth under immense pressure and pushed to the surface over billions of years, diamonds are an extraordinarily rare, natural gift.
But no two diamonds are created the same and therefore scientists have a categorisation method according to their rarity, which includes two types: Type I and Type II diamonds.
Type I diamonds are the most common diamond type, making up 98% of all natural diamonds, with a colourless or hue of yellow or brown stone. As they are more common, they tend to be less valuable than Type II diamonds.
Type II diamonds are more chemically pure and can be found in grey, light brown, light yellow, or pink.
Unlike yellow diamonds, which comprise over 60% of all fancy colour diamonds produced, natural pinks fall into the same category as blues and reds for their extreme rarity. The higher the intensity or strength of the colour, the more expensive the stone.
This is the second most valuable gem ever sold at auction and produced a new world record, commanding more than $US 5.1 million ($AU 7 million) per carat.
The history of the Argyle diamond mine
The Argyle mine in Western Australia, is one of the most famous diamond mines in the world, producing around 8 million carats of diamonds every year since it opened in 1983, it was the first major diamond-mining operation in Australia.
The Argyle mine is not only known for the large quantity of diamonds it produces, but more-so for the consistent recovery of a small number of pink diamonds. Only one in every two and a half million tons of ore processed in the Argyle mine, contains a pink diamond.
Mining operations at the Argyle mine ceased in November 2020, after 37 years of operations and producing more than 865 million carats of rough diamonds.
With the closure of the mine, supply for pink diamonds has become increasingly constricted, making the remaining pink diamonds more valuable than ever and cementing their place in history, as some of the world’s most expensive diamonds.
Pink Argyle diamonds are divided into four categories:
Purplish Pink (PP)
Pink (P)
Pink Rosé (PR)
Pink Champagne (PC)
The value of Argyle, and any fancy colour diamonds, increases with its colour intensity, this ranges from 1 (the highest) to 9 (the lowest).
Are pink diamonds a good investment?
As we know, 90% of the world’s annual natural pink diamond supply was mined from one single source: the Argyle mine in Western Australia, which has now completely ceased all mining operations.
This makes demand higher than supply, drastically increasing their resale value and indicating that Argyle pink diamonds will retain their value over time – a good start when it comes to considering pink diamonds for investment.
Given the challenges that investors face in the stock, housing and cryptocurrency markets today, it’s not surprising that they are looking to diversify their portfolio, with a more predictable asset.
In fact, pink diamonds have delivered very strong long-term returns (circa 600% in the past 15-20 years), and, at present, are not suffering in the same way as most of the more traditional asset classes.
Pink diamonds have also been able to generate strong long-term returns, outpacing the rise in consumer prices, including in the aftermath of the COVID pandemic, where inflation has surged, and many other asset classes have crashed.
They have been one of the few assets that have not only matched, but exceeded inflation in recent times.
All these factors could indicate the increasing interest in Argyle pink diamonds for smart investors all over the world.
Documents authenticating its status as a natural diamond and listing the specific characteristics of the diamond for conclusive identification, are crucial for resale.
There are many different gemmological laboratories around the world that issue diamond reports, however Australian Diamond Portfolio only sources stones that come with a report issued by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and/or Argyle Pink Diamonds directly.
These two reports are the most globally recognised & traded reports available on the market with respect to coloured diamonds.
Australian Diamond Portfolio is Australia’s No. 1 source for pink diamonds. We can provide you with a full solution for buying rare coloured diamonds including market education, sourcing, certification, vault storage and regular valuations.
For a decade we have sourced some of the rarest pink diamonds from our Sydney Headquarters, for clients here and across the world, making it our mission to make rare coloured diamonds accessible to all investors.
If you are considering buying an Argyle pink diamond, the best place to start is our Pink Diamond Guide.
You can also contact our team of Argyle diamond experts here.
Where To Buy A Pink Diamond from the Argyle Mine
Table of contents
The world’s most expensive diamonds
Formed at the core of the earth under immense pressure and pushed to the surface over billions of years, diamonds are an extraordinarily rare, natural gift.
But no two diamonds are created the same and therefore scientists have a categorisation method according to their rarity, which includes two types: Type I and Type II diamonds.
Type I diamonds are the most common diamond type, making up 98% of all natural diamonds, with a colourless or hue of yellow or brown stone. As they are more common, they tend to be less valuable than Type II diamonds.
Type II diamonds are more chemically pure and can be found in grey, light brown, light yellow, or pink.
The birthplace of almost all of the world’s pink diamonds is the Argyle mine in the Kimberly region of Western Australia. Only 0.0001% of the diamonds in existence are pink, making them rare and extremely valuable.
Unlike yellow diamonds, which comprise over 60% of all fancy colour diamonds produced, natural pinks fall into the same category as blues and reds for their extreme rarity. The higher the intensity or strength of the colour, the more expensive the stone.
A recent auction held by Sotheby’s Hong Kong saw an 11.5 carat diamond (the Williamson Pink Star diamond) selling for $US 57.7 million ($AU 78.46 million).
This is the second most valuable gem ever sold at auction and produced a new world record, commanding more than $US 5.1 million ($AU 7 million) per carat.
The history of the Argyle diamond mine
The Argyle mine in Western Australia, is one of the most famous diamond mines in the world, producing around 8 million carats of diamonds every year since it opened in 1983, it was the first major diamond-mining operation in Australia.
The Argyle mine is not only known for the large quantity of diamonds it produces, but more-so for the consistent recovery of a small number of pink diamonds. Only one in every two and a half million tons of ore processed in the Argyle mine, contains a pink diamond.
Mining operations at the Argyle mine ceased in November 2020, after 37 years of operations and producing more than 865 million carats of rough diamonds.
With the closure of the mine, supply for pink diamonds has become increasingly constricted, making the remaining pink diamonds more valuable than ever and cementing their place in history, as some of the world’s most expensive diamonds.
How to tell an Argyle pink diamond’s value
While other diamonds follow the traditional 4 C’s categorisation method, the Argyle company made their own system of grading colour for the Argyle pink diamonds.
Pink Argyle diamonds are divided into four categories:
The value of Argyle, and any fancy colour diamonds, increases with its colour intensity, this ranges from 1 (the highest) to 9 (the lowest).
Are pink diamonds a good investment?
As we know, 90% of the world’s annual natural pink diamond supply was mined from one single source: the Argyle mine in Western Australia, which has now completely ceased all mining operations.
This makes demand higher than supply, drastically increasing their resale value and indicating that Argyle pink diamonds will retain their value over time – a good start when it comes to considering pink diamonds for investment.
Given the challenges that investors face in the stock, housing and cryptocurrency markets today, it’s not surprising that they are looking to diversify their portfolio, with a more predictable asset.
In fact, pink diamonds have delivered very strong long-term returns (circa 600% in the past 15-20 years), and, at present, are not suffering in the same way as most of the more traditional asset classes.
Pink diamonds have also been able to generate strong long-term returns, outpacing the rise in consumer prices, including in the aftermath of the COVID pandemic, where inflation has surged, and many other asset classes have crashed.
They have been one of the few assets that have not only matched, but exceeded inflation in recent times.
All these factors could indicate the increasing interest in Argyle pink diamonds for smart investors all over the world.
Where can I buy an Argyle pink diamond?
When considering the purchase of an Argyle pink diamond, certification is one of the most important elements.
Documents authenticating its status as a natural diamond and listing the specific characteristics of the diamond for conclusive identification, are crucial for resale.
There are many different gemmological laboratories around the world that issue diamond reports, however Australian Diamond Portfolio only sources stones that come with a report issued by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and/or Argyle Pink Diamonds directly.
These two reports are the most globally recognised & traded reports available on the market with respect to coloured diamonds.
Australian Diamond Portfolio is Australia’s No. 1 source for pink diamonds. We can provide you with a full solution for buying rare coloured diamonds including market education, sourcing, certification, vault storage and regular valuations.
For a decade we have sourced some of the rarest pink diamonds from our Sydney Headquarters, for clients here and across the world, making it our mission to make rare coloured diamonds accessible to all investors.
If you are considering buying an Argyle pink diamond, the best place to start is our Pink Diamond Guide.
You can also contact our team of Argyle diamond experts here.
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