Famous Grey Diamonds
 

Der Blaue Wittelsbacher diamond weighting 35.56 carat

The Wittelsbach Diamond also known as Der Blaue Wittelsbacher is a 35.56 carats blue diamond with VS2 clarity that has been prized by European royals for centuries. It has been part of both the Austrian and the Bavarian Crown jewels.

Its color and clarity have been compared to the Hope diamond.

In 1664, King Philip IV of Spain purchased the jewel and included it in the dowry of his daughter, Margaret Teresa. After she died, her husband, Leopard I of Austria, kept the stone. It remained in his family until 1722, when his granddaughter, Maria Amalia married Charles of Bavaria, a member of the Wittelsbach family.

 In 1745, the Wittelsbach was first mounted on the Bavarian Order of the Golden Fleece.  When Maximilian IV Joseph von Wittlesbach became the first King of Bavaria in 1806, he commissioned a royal crown which prominently displayed the diamond. Until 1918 the jewel remained on the top of the Bavarian crown. It was seen last in public at  Ludwig III of Bavaria’s 's funeral in 1921.

The diamond was lost during the aftermath of World War I. In 1931, Christie’s   tried to sell the diamond in auction, but found no buyers. In the 1960s, the Goldmuntz family asked Joseph Komkommer, a jeweler, to re-cut the diamond, but he recognized the historical significance of the stone and refused. Instead he, along with dealers, bought it. The diamond had been in a private collection since 1964
On 10 December 2008 the Wittelsbach Diamond was sold at a Christie's auction in London for 16.4 million pounds Sterling, or US$23.4 million. To date this is the highest price ever paid at auction for a diamond.

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