A stunning1 blue diamondbroke a world record today, fetching a price of 6.2 million British pounds (about $9.6 million), or about $1.8 million per carat, according to auctioneer Bonhams.
据美国生活科学网4月26日报道，英国宝龙拍卖行称，4月24日，一颗惊艳蓝钻以620万英镑（约960万美元）的价格拍出，每克拉价格高达180万美元，刷新了此前每克拉168万美元的世界纪录。
The diamond is a brilliant blue and is set in a ring made by Italian jeweler Bulgariaround 1965. The high price likely comes from the diamond's unusual color as well as its
posh（时髦的） setting: Bulgari is a company beloved by the Hollywood
glitterati（上层人士）, and blue diamondsare rarely up for sale. This particular blue diamond also happens to be a large
chunk2 of ice at 5.3 carets.
The diamond is a "fancy deep-blue" stone,
terminology3 that describes its
intensity4 of color. The blue sheen comes from boron atomsintermixed with the carbonthat makes up the diamond's structure. According to Bonhams, less than 1 percent of all diamonds mined are blue diamonds.
"Blue diamonds, especially those over 5.00 carats, are extremely rare to see on the market and continue to be highly sought-after," Jean Ghika, the director of Bonhams' European
jewelry5 department, said in a statement. "We are honored to have handled the sale of such a unique
gem6."
The previous record for the price of a diamond per carat was $1.68 million, according to Bonhams.
The most famous blue diamond in the world is the Hope Diamond, which now resides at the Smithsonian Natural History Museum. Crudely cut, the Hope Diamond was 112 and 3/15 carats and likely came from a mine in Golconda, India, according to the Smithsonian. King Louis XIV bought the diamond from a French merchant who picked it up in India and later had it recut into a 67 and 1/8-carat stone. The diamond remained in the hands of French
royalty7 until 1792, when it was stolen during an episode of unrest and looting. [Sinister Sparkle: 13 'Cursed' Gems]
The diamond's path then becomes foggy until 1839, when it popped up in the gem collection of
banking8 heir Henry Philip Hope. The diamond then passed through the hands of multiple private sellers, gracing a
tiara（女式冕状头冠） at one point before being set as a pendant. The Hope Diamond was donated to the Smithsonian in 1958. Three-hundred-plus years of recutting has
whittled9 its weight down to 45.54 carats.
Blue diamonds aren't the only unusual color out there. Very rarely, miners
unearth10 red diamonds, which are sometimes mistaken for garnets or
rubies11. Only three red diamondsweigh more than 5 carats, including the Kazanjian Red Diamond, which went on display at the American Museum of Natural History in 2010.
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