The diamond, the world's largest pear-shaped fancy vivid yellow weighing 110.03 carats, was the top lot at Sotheby's semi-annual jewellery sale in Geneva, Switzerland.

The stone was discovered in South Africa last year and cut and polished by New York-based Cora International which put it up for sale, the auction house said in its catalogue.

It had a pre-sale estimate of $11-15 million. The hammer price includes the commission paid by the owner, who Sotheby's auctioneer David Bennett said was a private individual who wished to remain anonymous.

"It sold for a record for a yellow diamond ... It was exactly within our expectation for this spectacular stone," Mr Bennett said after the sale.

This time last year, a rare pink diamond broke the world record for a jewel sold at a Sotheby's auction after a dealer bid more than £29 million.

Source: telegraph.co.uk