Jewelry extravaganza comes to Jakarta
Hera Diani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
It has been a while since Nicole Kidman danced and sang Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend in the exuberant 2001 flick Moulin Rouge.
The song came to mind again, repeatedly and endlessly, while strolling around the Indonesia international exhibition of fine jewelry, timepieces, fine art and antiques, which began on Friday and ended today.
Images of Kidman moved from one booth to another at the Jakarta Convention Center, as the various dazzling diamonds displayed all but blinded us with their different colors, shapes and cutting.
"This is oval, 107.35 carats," said an exhibitor from South Africa, pointing to a brownish-yellow diamond almost as large as a golf ball.
The price? "Not less than US$1 million."
A quick stroll through the exhibition will provide even a layman with knowledge of fancy-colored diamonds, and their sky- high prices.
Moving on to other pricey displays, Tahiti, known for its huge pearl oysters, is also home to the world's most exotic and expensive pearls.
This year's event drew in 23 exhibitors, coming from Hong Kong, Iran, Italy, Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland and Thailand.
"Initially, there were 30 participants. But exhibitors from the U.S. withdrew for security reasons," said Hesti M. Sudjana from Mata Air marketing organizer.
Apart from diamonds, there were equally expensive displays of jewelry made from gold, platinum and precious stones.
A hippo ring in rose gold with pink sapphires from a Singaporean company provided a touch of the surreal.
And finally the Criss Cut, a patented 77 faceted beauty, which adds new dimension to the traditional emerald or baguette step- cut diamond by maximizing the brilliance and fire that any rough diamond may possess.
Asian trademark jade also came in many colors and shapes.
The exhibition also sported a fashion show, models sauntering down the runway presenting different kinds of jewelry.
US$8,000 got you into the buying game, but for the uninitiated the price of admission was a bargain.