The 59.60-carat pink diamond is the largest Internally Flawless, Fancy Vivid pink diamond ever graded by the GIA, and sold for above its estimate of $60 million (£48.3 million) at Sotheby's in Hong Kong. 

It breaks the record previously held by the Oppenheimer Blue diamond, which sold for $57.5 million at Christie's in Geneva last May. It has also become the highest price item ever sold at auction in Asia.

After bidding from three clients, the diamond was sold to jewellery retailer Chow Tai Fook, who was on the telephone to Sotheby's Asia CEO Kevin Ching, for a hammer price of 490 million Hong Kong dollars ($63 million). The sale total was 553 million Hong Kong dollars once the buyer's premium was added.