The world’s largest ruby up for auction will be offered in June by Sotheby’s in New York, the auction house said at a preview in Hong Kong, and is estimated to fetch more than $30 million.
That would likely make the 55.22-carat gem, known as Star of Furathe most expensive ruby ever sold at auction, said Uni Kim, a specialist in Sotheby’s jewelry department in the Asian financial capital.
“It’s from Mozambique, which is also one of the most popular new origins we see for rubies, in addition to the more traditional and classic Burmese pieces,” Kim added.
The current world record for a ruby sold at auction was set in May 2015. Sunrise Rubya 25.59-carat Burmese stone that sold for $30.3 million at Sotheby’s in Geneva.
The new stone, whose name means fury star in Portuguese, it was unearthed from the Fura mining company’s ruby mine in the northern Montepeuz region of Mozambique in July 2022.
Kim said the ruby, which will be offered at Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels sale, was a 101-carat rough gemstone when it was first discovered, fueling enthusiasm among many in the gem industry.
The quality and size of the gemstone “are almost unheard of,” Dev Shetty, chief executive officer of Fura Gems, said in a statement.
“We estimate that Star of Fura it will sell for over $30 million,” Kim added. “Hopefully we can see it just setting a new record for Mozambique rubies.”
After going on display in Hong Kong, the gem will go on display in Taipei, China, Singapore, Geneva and Dubai, before being auctioned in New York on June 8.
Editing Astrid Sanchez
