This gemstone appears ruby-like yet it's not; it's the world's scarcest type of diamond.
Peer deep into the enigmatic Winston Red Diamond, and its fiery crimson hue seems to burn bright. Weighing a mere 2.33 carats, this rare gemstone radiates a saturated, unaltered crimson, much like Earth's own blood coursing through the facets.
This exceptional diamond belongs to the exclusive "Fancy red" category, one of the rarest diamond types, with less than 30 known examples according to science. You can find it gleaming at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, nestled next to the famous Hope Diamond, worth an eye-watering $350 million.
For years, the reason behind the Winston Red Diamond's striking red color remained a puzzle. Now, thanks to meticulous investigation by scientists at the Smithsonian and the Gemological Institute of America, the mystery has been finally unraveled. What they discovered offers insights not just about the diamond's radiant glow but also about the unfathomable pressures that created it and the precarious journey it undertook to reach the light.
Crimson Curiosity
Unlike other colorful diamonds, red diamonds don't owe their hue to impurities such as boron for blue or nitrogen for yellow. The Winston Red owes its crimson color to a more peculiar process – plastic deformation – that leaves invisible scars in the diamond's crystal structure. These scars distort the diamond, causing light to bend and absorb in unusual manners, specifically around a wavelength of 550 nanometers - the sweet spot for red.
"The Winston Red's sacrificial crimson color is the result of a careful balance of absorption bands," the researchers explain in their study published in Gems & Gemology. Key among these absorption bands is the 550 nm band linked to plastic deformation, as well as nitrogen-related defects called N3, H3, and H4 [1].
Remarkably, the Winston Red shows no modifying hues, such as brown, orange, or purple. This pristine shade earned it the sought-after "Fancy red" label, bestowed upon fewer than one in every 25 million diamonds analyzed by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA).
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From Empire to the Exhibit
The Winston Red Diamond's tale begins in September 1938, when Jacques Cartier, renowned jeweler, sold it to Digvijaysinhji, the Maharaja of Nawanagar. In a letter from that year to the maharaja, Cartier envisions the diamond set in a ring or "placed in your big necklace between the green diamond and the pink diamond pendeloque [...]. The red diamond would take the place of the white triangular diamond."
The necklace, called the Ceremonial Necklace of Nawanagar, was one of Cartier's most extravagant creations, boasting over 600 carats of diamonds, including celebrated stones in green, blue, and pink. The red diamond became a part of the necklace, as confirmed by 1947 photographs showing the Maharaja holding the piece, the ruby-red gem shining at the center [2].
The necklace was dismantled in the 1960s, and the red diamond briefly reappeared as a pinky ring at a 1989 event, adorned by actress Brooke Shields [3]. Ronald Winston, heir to the House of Winston, eventually purchased it from the Maharaja's son before donating it to the Smithsonian Museum in 2023 [4].
Tracing the Stone's Ancestry
While the Winston Red Diamond's human history is well-documented, its geological origins remain elusive. Its cut, with a large culet and thin girdle, suggests that it was mined and crafted before the mid-20th century. Its internal features designate it as a type IaAB Group 1 diamond, which includes most red and pink diamonds with heavy deformations and high nitrogen content [5].
Through a comparative analysis of the Winston Red's structure and spectroscopic fingerprint with hundreds of other Fancy red diamonds, researchers narrowed the diamond's potential origin to either Brazil or Venezuela. Although these countries have regions with the required conditions for the transformation of color, the Winston Red's true geographic origin remains unknown [5].
The Uncommon Fancy Red
In the GIA's database of over a million fancy-color diamonds, only about 0.04% received the "Fancy red" label. Of these, a meager 4% measure more than two carats, and most come with low clarity scores due to imperfections like inclusions, chips, and feathers [5].
The Winston Red carries an I2 clarity rating, due to internal feathers and chips around the girdle. Yet, given its breathtaking color, these flaws are easily overlooked.
Its weight places it second only to the $7-million Moussaieff Red among confirmed Fancy red diamonds with recognized records. However, unlike the Moussaieff, the Winston Red is now available for anyone to admire in the heart of Washington D.C.
"This generous donation to the Museum epitomizes my lifetime achievements in this field," stated Ronald Winston. "I am delighted to share this remarkable collection with the Institution and the museum's visitors [4]."
Diamonds have always intrigued us, but Fancy reds exert an unparalleled fascination due to their striking beauty and valuable scientific significance.
"The Smithsonian provides our visitors with a unique opportunity to see the full spectrum of colors in which diamonds occur," remarked Gabriela Farfan, the museum's curator of gems and minerals [4].
Now, with the Winston Red accessible to the public, researchers, enthusiasts, and the curious can marvel at a rare gemstone formed from time, pressure, and serendipity – a crimson heart pulsing in the stone skeleton of our Earth.
Winston Red Diamond
Fancy red diamonds
Plastic deformation
Ronal Winston
Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
Gabriela Farfan
- The Winston Red Diamond's striking crimson color, unlike other colorful diamonds, is not due to impurities but a unique process called plastic deformation that leaves scars in the diamond's crystal structure.
- The study published in 'Gems & Gemology' reveals the Winston Red's crimson color is a result of a balance of absorption bands, with the 550 nm band linked to plastic deformation being key.
- Red diamonds are among the rarest, with fewer than one in every 25 million being given the 'Fancy red' label by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA).
- In finance, the Winston Red Diamond's value is substantial, with its donation to the Smithsonian estimated to be worth millions, making it one of the most valuable red diamonds.
- The Winston Red's journey through time started in 1938 when it was sold to the Maharaja of Nawanagar, later appearing in Cartier's extravagant Ceremonial Necklace alongside blue, green, and pink diamonds.
- As a rare, valuable artifact, the Winston Red Diamond represents an attractive subject in education-and-self development, entertainment, sports, space-and-astronomy, technology, lifestyle, medical-conditions, and science.
