Article: 10 Most Famous Yellow Diamonds in the World
10 Most Famous Yellow Diamonds in the World
Fancy-colored diamonds make up less than 1% of all diamonds mined in the world. Among the range of colors found, including red, green, brown, black, blue, and pink, yellow is the most famous and prevalent fancy colored diamond found.
Yellow diamonds come in all shapes, sizes and color intensities, with the most intense yellow diamonds in the world originating in South Africa. These rare stones captivate collectors and investors alike for their rarity, vibrant hue, and record-breaking prices. Larger yellow diamonds often fetch prices far exceeding their colorless diamond counterparts.
It’s no surprise fancy yellow diamonds captivate admiration and attention. Here’s a list of the biggest and most famous yellow diamonds that have made headlines and history.
Top 10 Famous Yellow Diamonds
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The Tiffany Yellow Diamond
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The Cora Sun-drop Diamond
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The Florentine Diamond
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The Sun of Africa Diamond
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The Kimberley Octahedral Diamond
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The Allnatt Diamond
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The Incomparable Diamond
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The Red Cross Diamond
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The Oppenheimer Diamond
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The Cross of Asia Diamond
1. The Tiffany Yellow Diamond
Carat Weight: 128.54 carats (originally 287.4 carats)
Origin: Kimberley Mine, South Africa, 1878
Cut: Cushion-shaped, with 82 facets
The Tiffany Yellow Diamond is one of the largest and most famous yellow diamonds ever discovered. With an original weight of 287.4 carats, the rough stone was found in 1878 in the Kimberley Mine, South Africa.
The stone was polished into a cushion-shaped, stellar brilliant cut of 128.54 carats. This antique cut has 82 facets – 24 more than a traditional round brilliant to maximize its brilliance. The Tiffany Yellow Diamond is on display at Tiffany & Co.'s New York City store.
2. The Cora Sun-drop Diamond
Carat Weight: 110.3 carats
Origin: South Africa, 2010
Cut: Pear shape
Record: Sold for $10.9 million at Sotheby’s Geneva in 2011.
Fun Fact: Largest known pear-shaped Fancy Vivid Yellow diamond.
The Cora Sun Drop diamond, found in South Africa in 2010, is the largest known pear-shaped Fancy Vivid Yellow diamond in the world. The decision to cut the stone into a pear-shaped diamond, a meticulous process that took six months, was based on the diamond’s intense yellow color.
The pear cut is a popular choice for Fancy Yellow diamonds with an intense hue. Yellow diamonds with a lighter tone are often cut into a square shape to enhance their color intensity.
Intense yellow diamonds are more rare and more expensive than colorless diamonds, often considerably so. The 110.3-carat Cora Sun Drop was sold for $10.9 million in 2011 at Sotheby's auction in Geneva. The anonymous telephone bidder set a world record price for a yellow diamond sale at the time.
3. The Florentine Diamond
Carat Weight: 137.27 carats
Origin: Unknown.
Cut: Double rose-cut with 126 facets
Mystery: This historic diamond has been lost for decades. Its current whereabouts remain unknown.
The Florentine Diamond must be one of the most mysterious gemstones in the world. Despite its incredible history and legacy, its whereabouts remain unknown. A 137.27-carat double rose-cut, light yellow diamond with nine sides and 126 facets, the Florentine Diamond, also known as the Tuscany Diamond, the Grand Duke of Tuscany Diamond, and the Austrian Yellow Diamond, has taken on various names throughout history.
The historic stone passed through the hands of many notable figures throughout the centuries, both legally and illegally. Legend has it that the Duke of Burgundy, Charles the Bold, had been wearing the diamond in battle when it was lost. The story goes that it was found by a foot soldier who sold it for a single coin.
Today, decades later, and with many wars and battles having come and gone, many of the top jewelers around the world speculate that the Florentine Diamond has been recut to a smaller 80-carat stone. Nobody knows where it is.
4. The Sun of Africa Diamond
Carat Weight: 70 carats (cut from a 127-carat rough)
Origin: Kimberley Mines, South Africa, 2007
Cut: Pear shape
The Sun of Africa Yellow Diamond is one of the most breathtaking gemstones in the world. Discovered in South Africa’s Kimberley mines in 2007, the 127-carat rough yellow diamond was taken to the Netherlands, where it was cut and polished to a 70-carat pear-shaped yellow diamond that displays dancing flashes of light from every angle, giving it the name “The Sun of Africa”.
Yellow diamonds are famous for their warm and brilliant color. The color of a yellow diamond ranges from light yellow to a vivid canary yellow, the brightest and most dazzling of all. The GIA classifies the Sun Of Africa Yellow Diamond as Fancy Vivid Yellow, the most precious and rarest color variety of yellow diamonds.
5. The Kimberley Octahedral Diamond
Carat Weight: 616 carats (uncut)
Origin: Dutoitspan Mine, Kimberley, South Africa, 1972
Record: The world’s largest natural octahedral diamond crystal.
The Kimberley Octahedral diamond, also referred to as the 616 Diamond (a reference to its carat weight) is the largest naturally formed octahedral diamond crystal discovered in the world.
As its name suggests, the stone was discovered in 1972 at the Dutoitspan Mine in Kimberley, South Africa, one of the most renowned diamond-producing areas in the world. Today, the Kimberley Octahedral fancy yellow diamond can be seen on display in the Diamond Vault at the Big Hole in Kimberley.
6. The Allnatt Diamond
Carat Weight: 101.29 carats
Origin: Premier Mine, South Africa
Cut: Antique cushion
Legacy: Purchased by Major Alfred Ernest Allnatt and later reset by Cartier.
The Allnatt Diamond is a 101.29-carat antique cushion-shaped brilliant Fancy Vivid Yellow diamond, GIA-certified with a clarity grade of VS2. The stone is believed to have been discovered in the Premier Mine (where the Cullinan Diamond was discovered) in Cullinan, Pretoria, South Africa.
The Allnatt diamond was named after one of its owners, Major Alfred Ernest Allnatt, a soldier, sportsman, art patron, and benefactor who purchased the diamond in the 1950s. It was Allnatt who commissioned Cartier to make a brooch setting for the diamond. The final design was a platinum flower with five white baguette-cut diamond-lined petals, a stem, and two leaves made up of brilliant-cut diamonds.
The Allnatt Diamond was resold for a little more than $3 million at Christie's auction in Geneva, May 1996. Its current owner, the SIBA Corporation, had the original 102.07-carat diamond re-cut to its current 101.29 carat weight. Although slightly smaller, the cutting process resulted in an upgrade to the diamond’s color intensity from Fancy Intense to Fancy Vivid.
7. The Incomparable Diamond
Carat Weight: 407.78 carats (cut from 890-carat rough)
Origin: Democratic Republic of the Congo
Cut: Trilliant
Record: Holds title as the largest internally flawless diamond ever graded.
Legacy: Found by chance by a young girl.
The Incomparable Diamond is one of the heaviest precious stones ever found in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, weighing 890 carats in its rough state. The Incomparable diamond, named for its fancy deep-brownish yellow color, was found in Mbuji Mayi in the 1980s by a young girl. She found it while playing in rubble outside her home.
The family sold the diamond to a jeweler and it later reached the hands of Donald Zale of Zale Corporation. It took four years to analyze and cut the stone, after which it emerged as a 407.78-carat trilliant cut. It currently holds the record for the largest internally flawless diamond and third largest diamond in the world.
Explore: The World's Most Famous Diamonds
8. The Red Cross Diamond
Carat Weight: 205.07 carats (cut from 375-carat rough)
Origin: Kimberley Mine, South Africa, 1901
Cut: Cushion, Stellar Brilliant with a Maltese cross facet
Legacy: Donated to the British Red Cross Society and auctioned to aid war relief efforts.
When the Red Cross Diamond was discovered in one of the Kimberly mines in 1901, it was a rough 375-carat stone. This pale canary yellow diamond was later cut in Amsterdam to a 205.07-carat cushion-shaped stone in a cutting style known as a Stellar Brilliant. This unique cut gets its name from the eight needle-like facets on the pavilion of the stone, pointing outward from its culet facet, resembling a Maltese cross.
The original group of firms who bought the stone presented the diamond as a gift to an art sale held in London in 1918 on behalf of the British Red Cross Society and the Order of St. John, hence the double appropriateness of its name, the Red Cross Diamond.
9. The Oppenheimer Diamond
Carat Weight: 253.7 carats (uncut)
Origin: Dutoitspan Mine, Kimberley, South Africa, 1964
Cut: Uncut
Legacy: Named after Sir Ernest Oppenheimer. Donated to the Smithsonian Institution by Harry Winston.
Discovered in the Dutoitspan Mine, Kimberley in 1964, the Oppenheimer Diamond is one of the largest gem-quality uncut diamonds in the world. The stone, weighing 253.7 carats, is a nearly perfectly formed yellow diamond crystal that measures approximately 20×20 millimetres.
In 1964, the Oppenheimer Diamond was named in his honor by its owner, Harry Winston, who donated the stone to the Smithsonian Institution in memory of Sir Ernest Oppenheimer.
10. The Cross of Asia Diamond
Carat Weight: 79.12 carats (originally 280 carats)
Origin: Jagersfontein Mine, South Africa, 1902
Cut: Radiant with table facets resembling a Maltese cross.
The Cross Of Asia Diamond was discovered at the Jagersfontein Mine in South Africa in 1902 as a 280-carat crystal. The first cut was to 142 carats. The diamond was then cut three more times: First to 112 carats, then to a cushion-cut of 109.28 carats and finally, in 1993, into a radiant-cut of 79.12 carats with table facets that resemble a Maltese cross. The current cut has eliminated all flaws. The Cross Of Asia is certified as a Fancy Yellow diamond that is internally flawless.
Find Your Own Yellow Diamond Masterpiece
Shimansky offers some of the most exquisite yellow diamonds for sale in South Africa, expertly cut and set in original creations. Visit a Shimansky showroom for an iconic design from the Fancy Yellow Diamond Collection. From engagement rings to statement jewellery pieces, we invite you to visit a Shimansky showroom and find your own yellow diamond masterpiece.
South African Yellow Diamond Jewelry
It’s no secret that the most brilliant and vibrant fancy yellow diamonds are found in South Africa. Whether you're drawn to a radiant solitaire or a bespoke yellow diamond creation, speak to one of our expert diamond consultants for a fancy yellow diamond as iconic as the ones above.