Argyle, Ellendale and the Story of Australian Diamonds

Most people picture diamonds coming from Africa or Russia — very few picture the Kimberley region of Western Australia. But for decades, Australia was home to one of the most remarkable diamond stories in the world, and it's one worth knowing if you're ever offered a genuinely rare pink, red or yellow stone.

The Argyle mine: the world's pink diamond capital

Diamonds were first recorded in Australia as early as 1851, but it was the discovery of the Argyle deposit in the East Kimberley in 1979 that changed everything. At its peak, Argyle — owned by mining giant Rio Tinto — was the world's most prolific diamond mine by volume, and by far the world's largest source of pink and red diamonds, producing roughly 90% of all the pink and red stones recovered globally each year. It also produced notable champagne, cognac and blue diamonds, and accounted for around 90% of Australia's total diamond production before its closure.

Each year Rio Tinto held an exclusive event known as the Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender — a curated sale of the finest pink stones recovered that year, exhibited in major diamond centres worldwide before auction. In its later years, the Tender consistently achieved record average prices per carat, reflecting just how scarce these stones had become as the mine approached the end of its life.

Ellendale: Australia's fancy yellow diamond source

While Argyle became known for pink, the Ellendale mine — one of only three hard-rock diamond mine locations ever operated in Australia — became a major global source of fancy yellow diamonds after their discovery there in 1976. At its height, Ellendale contributed around half of the world's supply of fancy yellow diamonds, a genuinely significant share for a single deposit.

Why this history actually matters to a buyer

With Argyle now closed, Australian-origin pink and red diamonds are becoming increasingly scarce on the market — every year, there are fewer left in circulation and no new ones being mined. If you're considering a fancy colour diamond, understanding this history is part of understanding what you're actually paying for: not just a colour, but a specific, finite chapter of diamond mining that has already closed.