The Mouawad Splendor

The Mouawad Splendor Diamond is an extraordinary 101.84-carat colorless diamond distinguished by its immense size, exceptional quality and unusual pear-shaped form.

The diamond has been graded D color and Internally Flawless, placing it among the rare class of exceptionally large diamonds combining the highest color grade with extremely high clarity.

Its distinctive shape is described by Mouawad as an eleven-sided pear, giving the stone an appearance unlike a conventional pear-shaped brilliant.

Diamond at a Glance

Name:
Mouawad Splendor Diamond

Weight:
101.84 carats

Color:
D

Clarity:
Internally Flawless

Shape:
Eleven-sided pear

Famous Auction:
Sotheby's Geneva, 1990

Purchaser:
Robert Mouawad

1990 Sale Price:
US $12.76 million

More Than 100 Carats of Exceptional Quality

Diamonds weighing more than 100 carats are rare in any quality.

Finding a diamond of that size that also reaches the highest end of the color and clarity scales is considerably more unusual.

At 101.84 carats, the Mouawad Splendor crosses the important 100-carat threshold while retaining a combination of D color and Internally Flawless clarity.

These characteristics helped make the diamond an important gemstone long before its association with elaborate jewelry designs.

D Color

On the internationally recognized diamond color scale, D is the highest grade assigned to a colorless diamond.

D-color diamonds display no noticeable body color under standardized laboratory grading conditions.

Achieving this grade in a stone exceeding 100 carats is particularly noteworthy because the large volume of a diamond can make even subtle traces of color easier to observe.

Internally Flawless Clarity

The Mouawad Splendor is also graded Internally Flawless.

An Internally Flawless diamond has no internal inclusions visible to a skilled grader under standard 10× magnification, although minor surface characteristics may be present.

Maintaining such exceptional internal purity in a diamond of 101.84 carats contributes substantially to the stone's rarity.

An Unusual Eleven-Sided Pear Shape

One of the most recognizable features of the Mouawad Splendor is its unusual shape.

Mouawad describes the stone as an eleven-sided pear-shaped diamond. Rather than following the simple outline of a conventional pear brilliant, its faceting and girdle configuration give it a distinctive architectural appearance.

For exceptionally large diamonds, cutters often develop individualized shapes in order to preserve valuable weight while maximizing beauty, symmetry and optical performance.

The resulting eleven-sided outline became one of the defining characteristics of the Splendor.

A Landmark Sotheby's Auction

The modern public history of the Mouawad Splendor was established on November 14, 1990, when the diamond was offered at Sotheby's in Geneva.

At the time, bringing a polished diamond of more than 100 carats to public auction was highly unusual.

Sotheby's later described the sale as a landmark event because it was the auction house's first sale of a diamond exceeding 100 carats.

The 101.84-carat D-color, Internally Flawless pear-shaped stone sold for nearly 16 million Swiss francs.

Contemporary GIA reporting placed the price at approximately US $12.76 million.

Robert Mouawad Acquires the Diamond

The successful purchaser at the 1990 Geneva auction was international jeweler and diamond collector Robert Mouawad.

After the purchase, the extraordinary gemstone became known as the Mouawad Splendor.

The acquisition added another major gemstone to the important collection of exceptional diamonds assembled by the Mouawad family.

A World-Record Diamond

Mouawad records that the Splendor received a Guinness World Record in 1990 as the world's most expensive single pear-shaped diamond.

Its reported value at the time was US $12.76 million.

The record helped establish both the diamond and its new name among the internationally recognized famous gemstones of the modern era.

A Turning Point for 100-Carat Diamonds

The 1990 sale had importance beyond the individual diamond.

Sotheby's has described the Mouawad Splendour sale as the beginning of its history of selling exceptional diamonds weighing more than 100 carats at auction.

Before that sale, there was little established public-auction precedent for offering such enormous top-quality polished diamonds.

The successful result demonstrated that international collectors were prepared to compete publicly for diamonds of exceptional size and quality.

Other famous 100-carat diamonds subsequently appeared at major international auctions, making this segment an important part of the modern high-end diamond market.

The Mouawad Diamond Collection

The Splendor became part of Mouawad's collection of rare and historically significant diamonds.

Mouawad has assembled numerous important stones, including exceptional colorless and fancy-colored diamonds in a variety of cuts.

Within that collection, the Splendor remains distinguished by the combination of its 101.84-carat weight, D color, Internally Flawless clarity and unusual eleven-sided pear shape.

Splendor or Splendour?

The diamond is encountered under two English spellings:

Mouawad Splendor and Mouawad Splendour.

Both names refer to the same 101.84-carat diamond. Mouawad currently uses the American spelling Splendor on its diamond gallery, while Sotheby's historical references frequently use the British spelling Splendour.

From Famous Diamond to High Jewelry

Although the Splendor was already internationally famous as an individual gemstone, Mouawad later incorporated the diamond into spectacular jewelry creations.

Its immense size made it particularly suitable as the dominant focal stone of highly elaborate designs.

In these settings, the surrounding gemstones served primarily to frame and emphasize the exceptional 101.84-carat center diamond.

The Sexy Splendor Fantasy Bra

One of the diamond's most unusual appearances came through Mouawad's collaboration with Victoria's Secret.

In 2005, the Mouawad Splendor became the focal gemstone of the Sexy Splendor Fantasy Bra.

The elaborate creation was modeled by Gisele Bündchen and combined high jewelry craftsmanship with fashion-show spectacle.

A $12.5 Million Creation

Mouawad valued the 2005 Sexy Splendor Fantasy Bra at approximately US $12.5 million.

The design was made in 18-karat white gold and featured more than 2,900 pavé-set diamonds weighing a combined 108.37 carats.

It also incorporated 22 rubies totaling 38.25 carats.

At the center of the design was the 101.84-carat Mouawad Splendor Diamond.

Why the Mouawad Splendor Is Exceptional

The importance of the Mouawad Splendor comes from a combination of characteristics rather than from carat weight alone.

• It weighs an extraordinary 101.84 carats.
• It has the highest colorless diamond grade of D color.
• It has an Internally Flawless clarity grade.
• It has a distinctive eleven-sided pear shape.
• It became the first 100-carat diamond sold by Sotheby's at auction.
• Its 1990 price of approximately US $12.76 million established a major auction record.
• It became part of the important Mouawad diamond collection.
• It later appeared as the centerpiece of an extraordinary piece of jeweled fashion.

Mouawad Splendor Diamond Historical Timeline

Before 1990
The exceptional 101.84-carat D-color, Internally Flawless diamond is cut into its distinctive pear-shaped form. Detailed public documentation concerning its original rough diamond and mine of origin is limited.

November 14, 1990
The 101.84-carat diamond is offered by Sotheby's in Geneva.

1990
Robert Mouawad purchases the diamond for approximately US $12.76 million.

1990
The stone becomes known as the Mouawad Splendor and receives recognition from Guinness World Records as the world's most expensive single pear-shaped diamond.

Following Years
The Splendor becomes one of the prominent large diamonds in the Mouawad collection.

2005
The 101.84-carat diamond serves as the focal gemstone of Mouawad's Sexy Splendor Fantasy Bra created for Victoria's Secret.

Today
The Mouawad Splendor remains recognized as one of the important 100-carat-plus D-color, Internally Flawless diamonds of the modern era.

Why the Mouawad Splendor Diamond Is Famous

The Mouawad Splendor is famous because it combines extraordinary gemological quality with an important place in modern diamond-auction history.

Its 1990 Sotheby's sale demonstrated that enormous, investment-grade diamonds could command multimillion-dollar prices in the international auction market.

Its later ownership by Robert Mouawad and appearances in extravagant high-jewelry creations further extended the diamond's fame beyond the traditional gem and auction worlds.

More than three decades after its landmark sale, the combination of 101.84 carats, D color, Internally Flawless clarity and an unusual eleven-sided pear shape continues to distinguish the Mouawad Splendor among the world's famous diamonds.

Legacy of the Mouawad Splendor

Unlike famous diamonds whose reputations were formed through centuries of royal ownership, warfare or political intrigue, the Mouawad Splendor represents a more modern chapter in diamond history.

Its fame grew from extraordinary gemological characteristics, a groundbreaking public auction and its association with one of the world's best known collectors of important diamonds.

The Splendor also illustrates the changing role of famous diamonds in the modern era. A gemstone can simultaneously be a rare natural object, a major collectible, an auction landmark and the centerpiece of extraordinary jewelry design.

Those qualities have secured the Mouawad Splendor Diamond a place among the notable famous diamonds of the world.