The Golden Empress, an impressive 132.55-carat Fancy Intense yellow diamond, is the latest addition to Graff’s magnificent collection of exceptional stones – one of the largest that Graff has ever acquired. It was discovered from the Letšeng mine in Lesotho, and gives off an intensely warm molten-like glow that radiates from the core.

The 132.55-carat stone originated from an opaque 299-carat rough that was cut to ensure the best hue and saturation for the stone. Graff’s artisan cutters and polishers had to strike a tightrope balance between articulating the facets to encourage light in and igniting the fire within, without losing any of its colour. The rough yielded a further eight satellite stones, comprising six pear-shape Fancy Yellows (with the largest at 21.34 carats) and two brilliant round stones.

Throughout its 55-year history, Graff has presented some of the world’s most memorable diamonds, including The Delaire Sunrise – the largest square emerald-cut Fancy Vivid Yellow diamond in the world at 118.08 carats; The Gemini Yellows at 51.29 carats and 55.74 carats; and the 100.09-carat Graff Vivid Yellow.