'Pink Legacy' diamond sells for record-breaking $50 million at Christie's

The 19-carat, rectangular-cut "Pink Legacy" diamond sold for a record 50.375 Swiss francs (€44.3 million, $50 million) on Tuesday at Christie's in Geneva.

The auction house said that renowned jeweler Harry Winston was the buyer. The identity of the seller was not disclosed.

The diamond had been expected to fetch between $30 million and $50 million. The auctioneer struck down a hammer price of $44.5 million, which excludes the standard "buyer's premium" and other fees.

Christie's said the Pink Legacy achieved a new per-carat record and was the second most expensive one ever sold at auction.

Graded "vivid," the highest rating for a pink diamond's color, Christie's says it's among the most chemically pure gems. The stone is internally pure with a regular count and mounted on a platinum ring.

It was once owned by the Oppenheimer family, who built De Beers into the world's biggest diamond trader.

The sale is the latest in the booming market for large pink diamonds.

In April 2017, a 59.6-carat diamond known as the Pink Star became the most expensive jewel sold at auction after going for $71.2 million at Sotheby's in Hong Kong. It was the largest polished diamond ever auctioned.

Then in November 2017, the Pink Promise sold for $32.5 million at Christie's Hong Kong. At almost 15 carats, the diamond sold for a record-breaking $2.176 million per carat. The sale of Pink Legacy has surpassed that, at $2.637 million per carat.

It is set to be a big week for Christie's as a painting by British artist Hockney is expected to smash the record for a work by a living artist sold at auction.

"Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures)" is set to be sold at Christie's Post-War and Contemporary Art Evening Sale at New York's Rockefeller Center on November 15 for an estimated $80 million.