An Inside View of the Pink Diamond Tender

September may be “back-to-school” month for most, but for me, it means seeing “the Argyle pinks.” This was my 10^th year in a row to get a ringside seat, and let me tell you, it doesn’t get any less exciting as the years go on.

 

The Tender

For 24 years running, the Argyle Diamond Mine has given up a small but incredible handful of Fancy Pink Diamonds. The numbers: Less than 50,000 carats of pink rough is found from 25 million carats mined. Of that 50,000 carats, only 65 stones were considered fancy enough to be considered “special.”

 

So special in fact, that this small lot is taken around the world for an invitation-only silent bid auction called the Argyle Pink Diamond Tender (aka “Rio Tinto’s Argyle Diamond Mine Pink Diamond Tender, after Rio Tinto took over the Argyle mine in roughly 2002).

 

I hope you’ve been reading about all of the Tender auctions here in JCK. This year’s collection was, yet again, an exciting example of what Mother Nature can do with just a little bit of carbon (and a whole lot of natural heat and pressure).

 

The Auction

Here’s how the auction works. Basically, with very few exceptions, you need to be a fancy colored diamond supplier to get an invitation. (There are approximately 100 invited guests.) Depending where you are in the world, you will get an invitation to see the diamonds in Perth, New York, London, Hong Kong, Tokyo, or Sydney. Your invite will also include your date and allotted time. Some of those invited will bring others from their office. Some will bring special clients. Some will request several viewings, knowing that they will want to bring several different clients, or that they will be in two or more of the Tender cities, for example, New York and then Hong Kong. And I can tell you from personal experience, one hour or more, it never seems like there’s enough time to really examine each of these special stones. And if there’s not enough time for me, and I’m just trying to get a good shot, I wonder how it is for those who are bidding $250,000/ct. in hopes of winning a stone? Talk about pressure!

 

Almost There

The Argyle Tender’s signature Fancy pink diamonds are truly an amazing sight – especially when you see them all together at once, spread out on the table in front of you in their little individual presentation boxes. And yet, as special as it is to be there in the room with 65 of the world’s most incredible diamonds, seeing them all in one place at one time, you have to keep telling yourself how rare they are, that this is all there is for the entire world to enjoy, just 65 stones. There are no others. You can’t wait for next month to see another group. You can’t call anyone else and ask for a dozen one-caraters to choose one for inventory. If you don’t get one of these right now, you’re going to have to wait until next year, and you have no idea what next year will bring. (And according to the Argyle representatives, they give the mine only another 10 years to produce diamonds. At that rate, we have another 600 stones – maybe. Is that a lot? Not when you’re talking in comparison to the 200 million carats that Argyle may produce over that time.)

 

Now if you’re an invited guest, you’re going to do some homework prior to the viewing. Argyle has set up a private website for you to access to see each stone individually, and in a multi-image 360 degree rotation. I’ve seen it, and it is actually quite cool. You make notes, check the color, the cutting, and the clarity. You note how the GIA Gem Lab and the Japan AGT Lab color and clarity graded each stone. And then you make your list of stones you want to see in person, in order of importance. You only have an hour, so you may not have time to see them all.

 

Your Day at the Tender

So you’ve arrived a few minutes early to the undisclosed location, and someone is in the lobby to escort you upstairs. Once upstairs, you are met by others who will escort you to your final destination. You are right on time. You are then greeted by Argyle representatives, and ushered into “the room.” Once you are there, you quickly look around the presentation table and then look for those diamonds you have noted on your list. (If you have time, you will look at the rest.)

 

With so many different pinks, you have to hold yourself back from comparing one to another. “Oh, this one’s too light,” or “too dark,” or “too orangey,” or “too included,” or “why didn’t they cut this into a round instead of a shield?” Seriously, it’s hard not to compare, and pick out favorites. But to step back and imagine that you are in a retail jewelry store with only one – and it doesn’t really matter which one – it would be the most fantastic stone of all. (Not that I could afford even a small one, but it would be nice to see some bigger ones. But if Mother Nature isn’t making them, oh well.)

 

My Invitation

This year, I was honored again, given a personal invitation to view and photograph the Tender for JCK. Thank you, Argyle! (I do want to go back again next year!)

 

Most of the early years were invitations from colored diamond expert and consultant Alan Bronstein at Aurora Gems in New York. (Yes, he’s the one with the Aurora Collection and the Butterfly of Peace.) Alan is a real gentleman in the business, and always calls to see if I want to attend the Tender with him during his time slot. For the past few years, I have been given my own invitation as well, which is both good and bad. It’s great to have the room to yourself, not having to worry whether the stone you are shooting is one which Alan wants to examine, but to be able to chat about the Tender with Alan while he’s “working the room,” to find out what he’s thinking about a particular color, size, and shape, well, you can’t beat that.

 

Only One Hour

This year, my one-hour time slot to view the Tender was the first hour of the day. It was a good day, as all three trains connected on time from Philly to Grand Central, and so I was there 15 minutes early at 8:45. A week before the Tender, I had called Stephen Hofer at Fancy Color Consultants in Stockbridge, Mass., to see if he would want to come down and examine the pinks with me as he did last year (knowing full well the answer would be a resounding “yes!”) As you remember, Stephen wrote the bible of fancy color diamonds, “Collecting and Classifying Coloured Diamonds.” For him, to view the pinks, all in one room, is a wonderful opportunity to closely examine what Mother Nature can do. Stephen brings along his portable colorimeter, which allows him to chart the Argyle pinks in three-dimensional color space. (Even if you don’t sell much in colored diamonds, the book’s description of color is a terrific selling tool for all colored stones.) What’s great about having Stephen there in the room is that he can tell you not only what the color is (in that three-dimensional color space) for each stone, but how these stones compare to others Argyles from previous years (as well as adding a personal opinion as to how well the labs graded the color of each stone. Even the Argyle reps seem to enjoy this part of the conversation.)

 

Our Amgad Invitation

What made this year especially nice was that when Jordan Fine from Amgad, New York, heard that my time slot was right before theirs, he graciously invited Stephen and me to stay on with him and the Amgad staff, including owner Amnon Gad, and so we had three full hours with this year’s pinks and were able to listen in on the bidding discussion taking place among the Amgad crew. While the mood was somewhat casual, much of the conversation was strictly confidential, so I can’t reveal any secrets here. It did, however, give us an insider’s view of how the experts think when bidding huge amounts of money on these incredibly rare little pink diamonds.

 

For example, this is not just a viewing of stones to buy as is, although many of the stones will remain this way forever. Argyle cutters do a terrific job of cutting for color and shape. But there are times when other experts can see something just a bit different.

 

As a participant, you are always looking to see if the cutter maximized the color. Could the stone be recut to bring out more color, to go from Fancy Intense to Fancy Vivid, or, specifically in the case of the Argyle Pinks, to go from Purplish-Pink to Purplish-Red?

 

You also hear of trying to match stones, since pairs are worth more than singles. And Argyle is aware of that, too. This was the first time they actually paired two stones for auction. But the experts look not just in matching stones in the room, but also pulling stones out of their pockets and seeing if there are any stones that could match something they already own.

 

The Risks of Winning

With anything, there are risks. The risks in here include winning a stone that you see as a potential recut for better color. After it’s recut, does it really improve the stone, or did you just lose 5 points at $135,000/carat for nothing? Or the risk of underbidding for the other half of a matched pair; would it have been worth it to have bid more? That will haunt you for another year. With everyone’s thoughts on how to maximize their offers without bidding too much, the tension in the room can become really thick.

 

With tension comes humor. The humor in the room can be very subtle, as the probing of Argyle representatives for any hint as to how much to bid – no comment – or how bidding this year compares to last – no comment. It’s a futile, but humorous, bantering back and forth. The Argyle reps reveal nothing and just smile. But in all seriousness, with an undisclosed reserve price, you could overbid your competition by $50,000/ct. or more and still not win the stone. The bidding in this Tender is not for the weak of heart or tight of pocket.

 

The Stones

OK – so of the 65 stones, 29 were a carat or larger. The largest is the 3-carat Fancy Intense Pink Radiant. It’s an I₁. And a VERY pretty stone. One of my personal favorites. There are eye-visible included crystals right smack in the center of the table. (I actually like that for these stones. They’re Mother Nature’s signature. And they don’t bother me in the least.) And you have to remember – Argyle’s not selling clarity. They’re selling color! I dare you to show me another Fancy Intense Pink Radiant cut 3-carat stone that’s this pretty and has a better clarity. Again, each stone in the room is incredibly rare because of its color. So I’ll take the one with a table full of crystals!

 

One of the prettiest stones was a 48-point Fancy Purplish Red oval. Clarity grade SI₂ – who cares about the clarity? The color was terrific!

 

Now, about the four Red diamonds.…. I’ll quote from Hofer’s book on this. “Astute collectors are aware that pure red represents an almost fictitious standard for a natural colour diamond to possess, …” Purplish-Red, which is the color of these four Argyle diamonds, not a pure red, is described by common names such as burgundy, cranberry, garnet, wine, etc. And this is more what you see with the Argyle diamonds. They’re certainly important, but I don’t want you to think we’re seeing Burma ruby or stoplight red. (When you see the pictures, you may be asking yourself, “Where’s the red?” It’s there. Trust me.)

 

The Room Itself

Many people ask about “the room.” “What was it like?” For the past decade, the showing of the Argyle pinks has been in undisclosed luxurious hotel suites, with all of the ambiance befitting the importance of these tiny little pink carbon crystal guests. But for some reason, possibly just a cost-saving move, this year we were given the address of an office building, ushered up to a suite of, well, small offices, and then, there we were, in a relatively boring conference room, with daylight streaming in on one side, and yellowed fluorescent lighting emanating from the ceiling. (Those were turned off immediately.) Not that the light in the luxury hotels was any better, with their blue tinted windows and incandescent recessed spotlights. But the ambiance was certainly different. And if you weren’t professional enough, one might begin to think that the stones were not worth as much, not important enough to deserve a better setting. But I’m digressing. Have you seen a lot of diamond offices in Manhattan? If you have, then this was a luxury suite in comparison … except for the lighting, of course.

 

The Photo Album

Here’s a list of all the stones in the Tender, as well as a photo album of our visit to the 2008 Rio Tinto Argyle Pink Diamond Tender. Enjoy the show!

 

01 - “Aphrodite”

1.01 Carat Round Brilliant

GIA Fancy Purplish Red SI₁

AGT Fancy Deep Purplish Pink SI₂

 

02

0.57 Carat Marquise

GIA Fancy Vivid Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Vivid Pink I₁

 

03

0.50 Carat Oval

GIA Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink SI₂

AGT Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink SI₁

 

04

0.53 Carat Oval

GIA Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink SI₂

AGT Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink SI₂

 

05

0.50 Carat Square Emerald

GIA Fancy Intense Purplish Pink VVS₁

AGT Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink VVS₁

 

06

0.53 Carat Emerald

GIA Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink I₁

 

07

0.67 Carat Round Brilliant

GIA Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink I₁

 

08

0.71 Carat Oval

GIA Fancy Deep Purplish Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink I₁

 

09

0.48 Carat Oval

GIA Fancy Purplish Red SI₂

AGT Fancy Purplish Red SI₂

 

10

1.02 Carat Radiant

GIA Fancy Vivid Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Purplish Red I₁

 

11

0.65 Carat Radiant

GIA Fancy Deep Purplish Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink I₁

 

12

1.77 Carat Radiant

GIA Fancy Deep Purplish Pink SI₂

AGT Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink I₁

 

13

0.82 Carat Radiant

GIA Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink I₁

 

14

0.52 Carat Radiant

GIA Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink SI₂

AGT Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink SI₂

 

15

0.62 Carat Emerald

GIA Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink VS₂

AGT Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink VS₂

 

16

1.04 Carat Shield

GIA Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink I₂

AGT Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink I₂

 

17

1.05 Carat Emerald

GIA Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink SI₁

AGT Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink SI₂

 

18

0.60 Carat Emerald

GIA Fancy Intense Pink VS₁

AGT Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink VS₁

 

19

1.25 Carat Square Emerald

GIA Fancy Deep Pink SI₂

AGT Fancy Deep Pink SI₂

 

20

0.60 Carat Radiant

GIA Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink SI₂

AGT Fancy Purplish Red SI₂

 

21

2.07 Carat Shield

GIA Fancy Deep Purplish Pink I₂

AGT Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink I₁

 

22 – “Ocean Seer”

1.41 Carat Octagon

GIA Fancy Deep Gray-Violet SI₂

AGT Fancy Dark Gray Violet SI₂

 

23

0.90 Carat Oval

GIA Fancy Dark Gray-Violet I₁

AGT Fancy Dark Gray Violet I₁

 

24

1.06 Carat Octagon

GIA Fancy Blue-Grey SI₁

AGT Fancy Gray Blue SI₁

 

25

1.04 Carat Oval

GIA Fancy Deep Pink SI₁

AGT Fancy Deep Pink SI₁

 

26

1.21 Carat Emerald

GIA Fancy Intense Orangey Pink VS₂

AGT Fancy Deep Pink VS₂

 

27

1.01 Carat Radiant

GIA Fancy Intense Pink SI₁

AGT Fancy Intense Pink SI₁

 

28

0.78 Carat Emerald

GIA Fancy Deep Pink SI₁

AGT Fancy Deep Pink SI₁

 

29

0.92 Carat Emerald

GIA Fancy Intense Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Vivid Pink I₁

 

30

0.91 Carat Round Brilliant

GIA Fancy Deep Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Deep Pink SI₂

 

31

0.57 Carat Round Brilliant

GIA Fancy Intense Pink SI₂

AGT Fancy Deep Pink SI₂

 

32

1.19 Carat Kite

GIA Fancy Deep Pink SI₂

AGT Fancy Deep Pink SI₂

 

33

1.30 Carat Princess

GIA Fancy Intense Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₂

 

34 0.90 Carat Emerald

GIA Fancy Intense Pink VS₁

AGT Fancy Deep Pink VS₂

 

35

1.33 Carat Radiant

GIA Fancy Intense Purplish Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink I₁

 

36

1.02 Carat Radiant

GIA Fancy Deep Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Deep Pink I₁

 

37

0.66 Carat Round Brilliant

GIA Fancy Intense Purplish Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₂

 

38

1.33 Carat Heart

GIA Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₂

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₂

 

39

1.53 Carat Round Brilliant

GIA Fancy Intense Purplish Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink I₁

 

40

0.74 Carat Round Brilliant

GIA Fancy Deep Pink SI₁

AGT Fancy Deep Purplish Pink SI₁

 

41

0.66 Carat Round Brilliant

GIA Fancy Intense Purple-Pink SI₂

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₂

 

42 – Matched Pair of Round Brilliants

0.50 Carat Round Brilliant

GIA Fancy Intense Purplish Pink VS₂

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₁

0.50 Carat Round Brilliant

GIA Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₂

AGT Fancy Intense Pink SI₂

 

43

1.11 Carat Triangular Brilliant

GIA Fancy Intense Pink SI₁

AGT Fancy Intense Pink SI₂

 

44

0.87 Carat Round Brilliant

GIA Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₁

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₁

 

45

1.08 Carat Radiant

GIA Fancy Intense Pink SI₁

AGT Fancy Intense Pink SI₁

 

46

0.89 Carat Emerald

GIA Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₂

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₁

 

47

0.72 Carat Emerald

GIA Fancy Intense Pink VVS₂

AGT Fancy Intense Pink VVS₂

 

48

1.17 Carat Shield

GIA Fancy Intense Pink SI₁

AGT Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink SI₁

 

49

2.01 Carat Shield

GIA Fancy Intense Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink I₁

 

50

0.66 Carat Pear

GIA Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink SI₂

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₂

 

51

1.02 Carat Emerald

GIA Fancy Intense Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Intense Pink SI₂

 

52

1.02 Carat Shield

GIA Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₂

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₂

 

53

0.89 Carat Radiant

GIA Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₂

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₂

 

54

1.27 Carat Oval

GIA Fancy Intense Pink SI₁

AGT Fancy Deep Pink SI₂

 

55

1.00 Carat Oval

GIA Fancy Intense Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Vivid Pink I₁

 

56

0.86 Carat Round Brilliant

GIA Fancy Intense Purplish Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Intense Pink I₁

 

57

3.00 Carat Radiant

GIA Fancy Intense Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₂

 

58

1.01 Carat Radiant

GIA Fancy Intense Purplish Pink I₂

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink I₁

 

59

0.68 Carat Oval

GIA Fancy Intense Pink SI₁

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₁

 

60

1.01 Carat Radiant

GIA Fancy Intense Pink I₁

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink I₁

 

61

1.16 Carat Round Brilliant

GIA Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₂

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₂

 

62

0.68 Carat Round Brilliant

GIA Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₂

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₂

 

63

0.86 Carat Triangular Brilliant

GIA Fancy Intense Pink SI₁

AGT Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₁

 

64

0.51 Carat Round Brilliant

GIA Fancy Intense Purplish Pink SI₁

AGT Fancy Deep Purplish Pink SI₁

 

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