This whopper of a diamond is not only one of the largest pear-shaped diamonds ever seen but it is also one of the world's most perfect diamonds, with the winning combination of a D colour (the top grading of colourless) as well as Flawless - which means it has no visible inclusions - and also a Type IIA. This last qualifier refers to the purity of the diamond. Only 1-2% of all diamonds are Type IIA, including the famous Cullinan and the Koh-I-Noor. The limpid qualities of Type IIA diamonds make them even more desirable.

The stone was found in the Jwaneng diamond mine in Botswana, and the task of cutting and polishing it took almost two years of painstaking work. The result is a stone of perfect symmetry and natural perfection, making it a very rare stone indeed. 

In the past few months, large white diamonds have been setting auction records and achieving strong prices. On 13 November 2012, Christie's made history when the hammer came down at US$21.5 million for the Archduke Joseph diamond, which had a pre-sale estimate of over US$15 million. This is the world record for a price paid for a colourless diamond, as well as the world record for a Golconda diamond, and the highest price ever paid per carat for a colourless diamond. Meanwhile, in February 2012 in Geneva, Sotheby's sold the Beau Sancy diamond, which had a pre-sale estimate of between US$2-4 milllion, for just under US$10 million.