The Emerald gemstone is May's Birthstone - Learn more about this beautiful gem from the earth.

May 2022, Newsflash

May Birthstone

Emerald

Emerald, the green variety of Beryl, is the most famous and valuable green gemstone. The name ‘Emerald’ comes from the word ‘Esmeralda’, a French term from the Greek word ‘smaragdos’ which means ‘greenstone’. Its beautiful color combined with durability and rarity makes it one of the most expensive stones. Deep, rich clear green is the most desired color in Emerald. The pale green color of Emerald is lesser in value. Very pale-colored stones are not called Emeralds, but rather “Green Beryl”. Colombia but also Brazil and Zambia are the top producers of beautiful emeralds

Jewelry Auctions

Brecken Branstrator @nationaljeweler.com

The “De Beers Blue" Diamond

The “De Beers Blue,” a 15.10-carat step-cut fancy vivid blue diamond,

sold for $57.5 million, or about $3.81 million per carat,

at Sotheby’s Hong Kong on April 27, 2022.

Hong Kong—The “De Beers Cullinan Blue Diamond” is off the market. In a single-lot sale at Sotheby’s Hong Kong on April 27, 2022, the 15.10-carat step-cut fancy vivid blue diamond sold for $57.5 million, soaring past its pre-sale estimate of $48 million. With an exact sale price of $57,471,960, it just missed stealing the auction record for a blue diamond from the 14.62-carat " Oppenheimer Blue" which sold for $57,541,779 in 2016. It is now the third most expensive jewel ever sold at auction, behind “The Pink Star,” which sold for $71.2 million in 2017, also at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, and The Oppenheimer Blue. The De Beers Cullinan Blue Diamond, or “De Beers Blue” for short, was discovered at the famed Cullinan Mine in South Africa in 2021. Petra Diamonds recovered the 39.34-carat rough diamond and then sold it to De Beers Group and manufacturer Diacore International for $40.2 million. De Beers Group CEO Bruce Cleaver said in a press release, “A tremendous result, this diamond ranks as one of the best De Beers has ever seen, and we are incredibly proud to join forces with Sotheby’s to share this defining moment in history.”

Above: The 59.60-carat “Pink Star” diamond has surpassed the Oppenheimer Blue to become the most expensive jewel ever sold at auction. Chow Tai Fook paid more than $71 million for the stone at Sotheby’s Hong Kong in April 2022.