The finished diamond was from a 242-carat rough stone that was discovered in the Jwaneng mine in Botswana, jointly owned by De Beers and the government of Botswana and known for producing high quality roughs. Following its discovery, the rough was cut and polished over a period of several months to produce a symmetrical oval brilliant diamond. Sotheby’s said given the elongated shape of the rough the oval shape was chosen to preserve the greatest amount of weight.

“When you think that one ton of mined earth yields less than a carat of diamond, and that high quality diamonds over 10 carats are a rarity, the discovery of a 242-carat rough, of gem quality and exceptional size, is nothing short of a miracle,” said Patti Wong, chairman of Sotheby’s Asia. “The perfect 88.22-carat diamond is a summary of everything: a wonder of nature, a masterpiece resulting from man’s ability to shape the hardest material on earth into an object of ultimate beauty and the most concentrated form of wealth.”

David Bennett, worldwide chairman, International Jewellery Division, described the stone as “breathtaking,” adding that “barely any diamonds of this weight are known to possess the same exceptional qualities of purity and perfection as this remarkable stone which is so full of fire and blinding brilliance.”

The number of carats, 88, is a symbol of perfection and eternity, often associated with prosperity and luck in China and other Asian cultures, Sotheby’s says. “The Chinese pronunciation of 8 (bā), similar to that of 發 (fā) meaning wealth or fortune, is welcomed as a blessing of affluence. In its duality – 88 – it is believed to bring good wishes in abundance. There is also a visual resemblance between 88 and 囍 (literally: ‘double joy’), a popular decorative design composed of two stylized characters 喜 (‘joy’).”

So it seems appropriate that the diamond will be offered in Hong Kong.

“Diamonds of a distinctive shape that resemble some object or symbol are extremely rare in nature. Most rough diamonds are octahedron-shaped or do not have a particular shape at all. The appearance of a heart-shaped rough diamond, especially on the eve of Valentine’s Day, seems to be a symbolic gift of nature not only to our company but also to all loving couples,” said Evgeny Agureev, Director of the United Selling Organization at Alrosa, in a media statement.

This is not the first time that the Russian firm lays hands on a unique diamond. Last summer, just in time for the World Cup that was being hosted in its home country, a rough diamond in the shape of a soccer ball was found at the company’s Karpinskaya-1 pipe, located in the northern Arkhangelsk Region.

The heart-shaped gem was actually dug up on January 23, 2019, but it made its public appearance on February 14. The place where it was unearthed, the Udachnaya pipe, is located near the town of Udachny, some 550 kilometres north of Mirny.

Udachnaya was first discovered in 1955 but it took over 15 years for open-pit mining to start in the place. The pipe now ranks among the largest primary diamond deposits both in Yakutia and abroad and it consists of two ore bodies, the Western and Eastern which unite in the near-surface part.