MANILA: A rare 25-carat, barrel-shaped pink diamond has been found among the jewellery collection of former Philippine first lady Imelda Marcos, Christie’s said on on Tuesday after the government asked the auction house to appraise her collection of rare stones.

The Philippine government could decide to auction the collection after Christie’s and rival Sotheby’s appraise three sets of jewellery confiscated almost three decades ago after the fall of Imelda’s husband, the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos.

“We had an extremely exciting find,” said David Warren, director of jewellery at London-based Christie’s. “We found an old briolette-cut diamond, which is 25 carats. It has a distinct pink colour. Pink diamonds are exceedingly rare.” He said the diamond could be valued at $5 million and would significantly increase the value of the entire collection if the collection is auctioned. The three sets in the collection were valued at $6m to 8m in 1991.

Only three pure, vivid pink diamonds of more than 10 carats have appeared for sale in almost 250 years of auction history, according to Christie’s.

A large cushion-shaped, pink-hued diamond sold for $28.55m at the Christie’s semi-annual jewellery sale in Geneva on Nov 10.

The Philippine government had tried to auction the three sets in 2005 but Imelda Marcos contested the move, claiming ownership of only two of the sets. One was found in the presidential palace after her family’s hasty departure in 1986 and another was seized in Hawaii, where they lived in exile.

Imelda Marcos, now an elected member of Congress, is best known for leaving behind more than 1,200 pairs of shoes when her family fled. She has vowed to recover her family’s seized assets.

Published in Dawn, November 25th, 2015