The Wittelsbach Diamond was shown on Dec. 5 in London before the auction entitled "Jewels: The London Sale" at Christie’s.
Francois Curiel,Chairman of Christie's Europe and International Head of Jewelry, said, "It is a great honor and a lifetime dream to handle a museum-quality stone such as the Wittelsbach."
The 35.56-carat diamond is pictured here against the background of a painting of Infanta Margarita Teresa of Spain, the princess whose father, King Philip IV of Spain, chose it as a part of a dowry for her engagement to Leopold I of Austria in 1664.