Rockefeller Sapphire

Source: Internet stones.com Network

The Rockefeller Sapphire, a Burmese blue sapphire of 62.02 carats, also belonged to the Nizam of Hyderabad before it was acquired by John D. Rockefeller in 1934.

 

 Rockefeller Sapphire gets its name from the one time owner of this extraordinarily beautiful blue sapphire, John D. Rockefeller Jr. the only son of John D. Rockefeller Sr. the renowned American industrialist and philanthropist, who purchased the stone in 1934, from an Indian Maharajah believed to have been the seventh and the last Nizam of Hyderabad, Mir Usman Ali Khan, whose period of rule extended from 1911 to 1948.

The Rockefeller Sapphire is a 62.02-carat, rectangular step-cut, internally flawless, cornflower blue sapphire of Burmese origin, with a rich highly saturated intense blue color, so characteristic of Burmese sapphires. The fine brilliant deep-blue color combined with the good clarity and transparency of the stone had made this unique sapphire the most expensive sapphire in the world both carat-wise and in terms of total price, fetching a record price of over $ 3 million at Christie’s, New York City, auction on April 11, 2001.