Estrela de Fura Ruby could shatter the $30m Record at Auction

Apr 11

In less than two months’ time, a 55.22-carat ruby is poised to become the largest — and should it sell for over $30.3 million - the most valuable gem of its kind ever to appear at auction when it goes up for sale in New York on 8 June, 2023 just one year after it was discovered in a Fura Gems mine in Mozambique.

The auction house of Sotheby’s who declared the sale last week, has announced that the Estrela de Fura is both "exceedingly rare" and "the most valuable and important" ruby ever to come to market.

In Portuguese, which is the official language of Mozambique, the name Estrela de Fura means Star of Fura and the stone is expected to raise more than 30 million USD. Until now, the auction record for a ruby was set by the Sunrise Ruby, a 25.59-carat stone found in Myanmar that fetched $30.3 million in Geneva, Switzerland, in 2015. Sales of large gemstones are, for the most part dominated by coloured diamonds, however rubies are considered to be the rarest and most valuable stones.

The Estrela de Fura gem was cut from a rough stone which was discovered by miners last July. The initial weight was 101 carats prior to cutting which was almost twice its current form. It therefore holds the record for the largest gem-quality ruby ever discovered. By cutting the huge stone into a smaller symmetrical shape, the polishing process helps to remove impurities and enhance the color and brilliance of the gemstone before putting it on the market.

Rubies were only first discovered in Mozambique a couple of decades ago, however the business took a big leap forward when a huge deposit of stones was found in the north of the country near Montepuez.

The Estrela de Fura was among the stones unearthed from the region, possessing "outstanding clarity" and a dark red color known as "pigeon's blood". Sotheby's head of jewelry for the Americas, Quig Bruning, said in a statement that the ruby could help African stones compete with, "and even outshine" those from Myanmar (the country formerly known as Burma).

In addition to this one-of-a-kind piece, the “Magnificent Jewels” sale will be headlined by an equally exquisite pink diamond expected to fetch over $35 million. Both stones will go on an international tour to Dubai, Singapore and Geneva, before heading to New York for June's auction.