Black diamonds have a charm and are the complete opposite of white diamonds. They tend to absorb light and are not known for their brilliant sparkle like white diamonds. Of the largest 100 known diamonds, a couple of them like the Black Orlov, Amsterdam Diamond, Spirit of de Grisogono, and Black Star of Africa are black diamonds.
BLACK STAR OF AFRICA
The Black Star of Africa or Cullinan I is a pear shaped diamond weighing 530.20 carats and was seen for the last time in Tokyo in 1971. The Star of Africa holds the place of 2nd largest cut diamond in the world and is on display with the other Crown Jewels in the Tower of London.
BLACK ORLOV
This diamond weighs at 67.50 carats and is reported to have belonged to a nineteenth-century shrine near Pondicherry, India. Set in a diamond and platinum necklace, the Black Orlov has been exhibited worldwide. It was sold for $300,000 in 1969 and was resold at Sotehby’s for $99,000 in 1990. It is currently owned by Dennis Petimezas who bought the diamond for an unspecified sum in 2005.
An interesting fact about the Black Orlov is that it carries a curse which began when the original 195-carat diamond was removed from the eye of the idol of Brahma at a shrine near Pondicherry. It is said to have been responsible for the death of three of its former owners who all leaped to their deaths.
THE SPIRIT OF DE GRISOGONO
It was mined several decades ago in West Central Africa before making its way to Switzerland. After being cut, the 312.24 carats diamond was set into a ring made of white gold. Surrounded by 702 white diamonds and weighing 36.69 carats, the Spirit of de Grisogono was sold to a private client by Fawaz Gruosi, the icon jeweler and famous diamond cutter who leads the de Grisogono House of jewelry for an undisclosed amount.
THE AMSTERDAM BLACK DIAMOND
Cut from 55.85 carats into a pear shape weighing 33.74 carats with 145 facets, it is one of the largest black diamonds in the world.
