There are seven different colors of natural orange diamonds; vivid orange being one of the two most desirable and expensive hues available. And a new natural vivid orange diamond, measured at 7.53 carats, was found in the Northwest Province of South Africa earlier this month.
Namakwa, the London based company that found the new diamond, along with another 26.74 carat diamond, told reporters that both diamonds have “flawless potential.”
Unlike with red diamonds, we know that the orange color occurs as a result of the presence of nitrogen and carbon lattice in a diamond. Because orange diamonds are a mix of the two primary colors yellow and red, the range of orange goes from light to a deep red-orange, vivid being one of the deepest in color, making it also one of the rarest.
The world’s most famous natural vivid orange diamond, before the Namakwa diamond had been found, was the “Pumpkin Diamond” worn by movie star Halle Berry at the 2002 Academy Awards when she won for Best Actress. The Pumpkin Diamond, 5.54 carats, was mined in Central African Republic and was bought by Harry Winston the day before Halloween, hence the name.
Heno Kruger, Namakwa’s Head of Sales & Trading has told reporters that the company has had a multitude of inquiries and interest in their tender, in which the new vivid orange diamond will be up for sale, and he expects the diamond to be the talk of the town for a while.
The Pumpkin Diamond, which is reportedly worth $3 million, was once displayed in the Smithsonian as part of the “Splendor of Diamonds” exhibit, so we can only imagine where this diamond will end up. But we do know that the Namakwa orange diamond is being sold at a diamond tender in Johannesburg, South Africa that opened yesterday, although a price tag has yet to be announced.