3 Billion Years Old Tennis Ball-Sized Diamond Could Fetch £48m at Auction

That’s how much this tennis ball-sized diamond will apparently cost you when it goes on sale at Sotheby’s, in London, on June 29.

The Lesedi la Rona, which is 3billion years old, was uncovered by Lucara Diamond Corp at its Karowe mine in Botswana in November.

The ‘our light’ gem is only beaten in size by the diamond which sits in the Crown Jewels.

David Bennett, worldwide chairman of Sotheby’s Jewellery Division, said: ‘The Lesedi la Rona is simply outstanding and its discovery is the find of a lifetime.

‘Every aspect of this auction is unprecedented.

Billionaire Forbes' Napoleon Collection Auctioned

US billionaire and francophile Christopher Forbes' collection of artifacts from the life of Napoleon III and Napoleon Bonaparte's wedding certificate went under the hammer over the weekend, drawing numerous buyers and museums, French auction house Osenat said Sunday.

"Ninety-nine percent" of the collection -- which included some 1,300 letters and manuscripts, and more than 500 paintings -- sold during the two-day auction, Osenat said.

"Forty lots were purchased or pre-empted" by museums, including the Musee d'Orsay in Paris, the neighbouring National Museum of the Legion of Honour and the National Archives.

The French government has a "right of pre-emption" enabling it to purchase items that it deems should remain in France.

John Lennon's Locks Sold For $35k

Remember i brought you the story that some dude was willing to buy John's locks for 12k but now A lucky bidder is going home with John Lennon's hair -- some of the most famous locks to hit the auction block -- and he paid big bucks for them.

Heritage Auction in Dallas had the 4-inch chunk of Lennon's hair after a hairdresser cut it off before his role in a 1967 movie called, "How I Won The War."  According to reports, Paul Fraser, a UK-based memorabilia collector was the highest bidder at $35k.

Book Of Psalms Sets World Record At Auction

A tiny book of psalms from 1640 has sold for $14.2m (£8.8m) in New York City, setting an auction record for a printed book. The Bay Psalm Book is believed to be the first book printed in what is now the US.

Sotheby's offered it for sale on Tuesday evening. The presale estimate was $15m to $30m. It was bought by US businessman and philanthropist David Rubenstein, who plans to lend it to libraries around the country.

Only 11 copies of the Bay Psalm Book survive in varying degrees of completeness. The book sold was one of two copies held by Boston's Old South Church

A copy of John James Audubon's Birds of America was the record-holder. It sold for $11.5m at Sotheby's in 2010. Follow Me On Twitter & Instagram: @effiongeton

Nude Photos Of Pop Star Madonna At 18 Are Now Up For Auction

Madonna has been pushing boundaries for decades, and she started things off as soon as she possibly could, posing nude at age 18 for photographer Herman Kulkens. The photos from the shoot were acquired by Penthouse founder Bob Guccione, who died of cancer in 2010, and are now owned by Jeremy Frommer, who bought Guccione's entire estate from his creditors last year. Though he's best known for his legacy at Penthouse, Guccione was also founder of Omni, a science fiction magazine, which ran from 1978 until 1998.

WARNING: The photos below contain full-frontal nudity and not safe for viewing for those under +18.

First Book Printed in America Up For Auction, Price Tag - $30 Million

The first book ever printed in America, in the year 1640, will be going up for auction later this year, according to BBC News.

The expected price tag? Up to $30 million!

The Bay Psalms Book was printed in Plymouth Massachusetts, written by Pilgrims as a declaration of their independence from the Church of England.

The book was last up for auction in 1947, where it sold for $151,000 (equal to $1.56 million today).

The current record for a printed book sold at auction is $11.5 million, which was paid in 2010 for Birds of America, by famed ornithologist John James Audubon.

What's the most you would pay for a book? I bet it doesn't approach $30 million!