PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Major Rio Tinto has launched a new exclusive sales event for some of the diamonds recovered from its Australian and Canadian mines.

Known as The Beyond Rare tender, the inaugural collection showcases 48 lots of exceptional polished diamonds, including legacy inventory of pink and red diamonds from the Argyle diamond mine and yellow diamonds from Rio Tinto’s Diavik diamond mine.

“The Beyond Rare tender is a new chapter for Rio Tinto’s diamonds business, and a testimony to the ongoing demand for highly collectible natural diamonds,” Rio minerals CEO Sinead Kaufman said.

“Rio Tinto has a rich history of innovative diamond sales and marketing events and this carefully curated collection of rare jewels will be in strong demand by the world’s finest jewellers, collectors and diamond connoisseurs.”

Titled The Art Series, this invitation-only event takes its inspiration from the art world, each polished diamond an extraordinary natural work of art with an esteemed provenance and a captivating story of rarity.

The first collection of The Art Series comprises 87 diamonds, weighing 29.96 ct in total, and includes seven ‘Masterpieces’ comprising sets of Argyle Pink diamonds and Yellow Diavik diamonds, selected for their unique beauty and accompanied by bespoke artwork, a rarified offering of 11 perfectly matched pairs of coloured diamonds, and 30 single diamonds, including one remarkable Fancy Red Argyle diamond.

The 48 lots will be showcased in Australia, Switzerland and Belgium, with bids closing on November 20.

“The market fundamentals that drive value appreciation for Argyle pink and red diamonds have never been stronger – a combination of severely constrained supply, with the closure of Argyle, and unwavering global demand for truly scarce gems,” Rio diamond business GM of sales and marketing, Patrick Coppens, said.

“The inclusion in the inaugural Beyond Rare Tender of two Fancy Intense Yellow diamonds from Rio Tinto’s Diavik diamond mine, located beneath a frozen lake in the Barren Lands of Northern Canada, is a beautiful counterpoint to the pink and red Argyle diamonds from the remote East Kimberley region of Western Australia. Yellow diamonds make up less than 1% of Diavik’s production, a rarity in a diamond mine otherwise known for its highly coveted white diamond production.”