555.55-carat black diamond from space up for auction, can use crypto

The rare 555.55-carat black diamond is dubbed "The Enigma" and is believed to have originated in outer space.

The auction house Sotheby's Dubai will be auctioning off the 55-faceted diamond in London in February. It expects the diamond will be sold for at least 5 million British pounds ($6.8 million), and they intend to accept cryptocurrency as a possible payment.

Black diamonds are also known as carbonado and are found naturally only in Brazil and Central Africa. Their origin is unknown, and six different hypotheses have been proposed, two of which refer to cosmic origins. They may have formed inside a giant star that then became a supernova, flinging the material toward Earth. They may also have come from asteroids, either directly or due to a collision with another interstellar object.

"With the carbonado diamonds, we believe that they were formed through extraterrestrial origins, with meteorites colliding with the Earth and either forming chemical vapor disposition or indeed coming from the meteorites themselves," said Sophie Stevens, a jewelry specialist at Sotheby's Dubai.

"The shape of the diamond is based on the Middle-Eastern palm symbol of the Khamsa, which stands for strength and it stands for protection. So there's a nice theme of the number five running throughout the diamond," Stevens said.