Pink Legacy diamond sells for world-record price at £38.5m as it goes under the hammer in Geneva

The Pink Legacy is a 18.96 carat fancy vivid pink diamond once owned by Oppenheimer family (Picture: AFP/Getty Images)

An unusually large pink diamond has fetched a staggering 50.3million Swiss Francs (£38.5m) at auction.

The “Pink Legacy”, which weighs just under 19 carats, was bought by US brand Harry Winston at auction in Geneva.

Its sale set a new world-record price per carat for a pink diamond at about $2.6million per carat.

The rare item is also the largest pink diamond auction house Christie’s has ever put under the hammer.

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We are honoured to be offering for sale The Pink Legacy, a Magnificent Vivid Pink diamond, that once formed part of The Oppenheimer Collection. This previously unrecorded Fancy Vivid Pink diamond weighs 18.96 carats and has exceptional colour saturation. Estimate $30-50 million. Magnificent Jewels, Geneva 13 November. @christiesinc #christiesjewels #christiesinc #christies #coloureddiamond #diamond #pinkdiamond #ring #geneva

A post shared by Christie's Jewellery (@christiesjewels) on Sep 25, 2018 at 2:26am PDT

And the huge price tag excludes the standard "buyer's premium" and other fees.

The Pink Legacy is a 18.96 carat fancy vivid pink diamond once owned by Oppenheimer family (AFP/Getty Images)

The stone once belonged to the Oppenheimer diamond family, and Christie's said it is among the most chemically pure gems ever.