What Happened to Elizabeth Taylor’s Jewelry Collection? Her Massive Diamonds, Historic Pearls and More
Husbands may not be forever, but diamonds last a lifetime: just take it from Elizabeth Taylor. The Old Hollywood starlet was known for her love of sparkle — and sparkle she did in emeralds, diamonds, pearls and rubies, to name a few.
“I feel as though I’m only the custodian of my jewelry,” Taylor wrote in her 2003 book, “Elizabeth Taylor: My Love Affair with Jewelry.” “When I die and they go off to auction I hope whoever buys them gives them a really good home.”
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Following the actress’ death in 2011, Christie’s put her sprawling jewelry collection on the auction block, garnering a total of nearly $116 million. However, not all of Taylor’s jewelry remained in her possession up until her death.
Ahead, see the fate of Taylor’s favorite accessories, who owns them now and how much they’re worth today.
The Elizabeth Taylor Diamond , $8 Million
Formerly known as the Krupp Diamond, this 33.19 carat sparkler was renamed for Taylor after her passing, as the Asscher cut stone became closely associated with her image. Her fifth husband, actor Richard Burton, gifted the impressive rock to Taylor in 1968 while the couple was yachting on the River Thames. Flanked by two tapered baguette diamonds and mounted in a platinum setting, the ring sold for over $8 million at Christie’s in 2011.
The Taylor-Burton Diamond, $5 Million
Burton topped himself in 1969 when he gifted Taylor a 69.42 carat pear-shaped diamond. Aristotle Onassis reportedly intended to purchase the diamond for his wife, the former Jackie Kennedy, though at the auction block, Cartier was victorious. The jeweler paid $1,050,000 for the gem, just $50,000 over Burton’s budget. It wasn’t long before Burton hunted down Cartier, purchasing the diamond for Taylor. The jewel was set in a ring before it was repurposed into a necklace. Today, it’s known as the Taylor-Burton Diamond.
While it was still in Taylor’s ownership, the bauble was insured for $1 million. The policy mandated that it could only be worn publicly for thirty days out of the year and that Taylor was to be accompanied by armed guards while wearing it in public. The actress eventually had a $2,800 replica made.
After Taylor’s second divorce from Burton in 1978, she sold the Taylor-Burton Diamond to jeweler Henry Lambert for approximately $5 million. Part of the proceeds were donated to build a hospital in Botswana, where Taylor and Burton remarried in 1975. In 1979, the diamond was sold again to Robert Mouawad of Mouawad jewelers.
La Peregrina Pearl, $11.8 Million
Perhaps Taylor’s most legendary piece of jewelry was the La Peregrina pearl. The massive pear-shaped pendant, which was in the Spanish royal family for over 250 years, clocks in at 55.95 carats. Worn by several Spanish queens and the Bonapartes of France, the pearl was the largest in the world upon its discovery in the 16th century. In 1969, the sea stone was sold at Sotheby’s, with the buyer being none other than Burton.
Purchased for $37,000, the actor presented it to Taylor as a Valentine’s Day gift during their first marriage. She tapped Cartier to create an intricate two-strand mounting comprising 56 natural pearls, four cultured pearls and eight diamond and ruby plaques set in platinum and gold. The pendant is detachable, allowing it to also be worn as a brooch.
The pearl can also be spotted onscreen in the 1969 film “Anne of the Thousand Days.” Taylor had a cameo in the film, which starred Burton as King Henry VIII.
In “My Love Affair with Jewelry,” the actress described once losing La Peregrina in her Caesar’s Palace suite. Luckily, it was recovered from one of her many pets.
“I just casually opened the puppy’s mouth and inside was the most perfect pearl in the world,” Taylor wrote. “It was — thank God — not scratched.”
The necklace was auctioned as part of Taylor’s Christie’s sale in 2011, fetching $11.8 million.
The Bulgari Sautoir, $5.9 Million
“I introduced Elizabeth Taylor to beer and she introduced me to Bulgari,” Burton once said.
For his wife’s 40th birthday, the actor gifted her a sapphire and diamond Bulgari sautoir. The Art Deco-inspired design boasts an octagonal pendant set with pavé diamonds and a 52.72 carat cabochon sapphire, the necklace’s platinum links are also encrusted with jewels.
At Christie’s, Taylor’s Bulgari collar realized $5.9 million in 2011.
The Bulgari Emerald Suite, $23 Million
During their engagement, Burton gave Taylor an emerald brooch and teardrop earrings — both by Bulgari. The actress pinned the rectangular-cut stone to her wedding gown, wearing the earrings at the Paris premiere of “Lawrence of Arabia” and over a decade later, to meet Queen Elizabeth II. Both pieces can also be spotted on Taylor in 1963’s “The V.I.P.s”
Burton eventually had the brooch fastened to an even more extravagant necklace. Comprised of 16 Colombian emeralds betwixt diamond quatrefoils, it was gifted as part of a set including a bracelet and a cocktail ring. Taylor famously wore the suite to accept her Oscar for “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”
In 2011, the total results of the suite’s sale at Christie’s achieved over $23 million.
The Mike Todd Tiara, $4.2 Million
Nearly a decade before Taylor married Burton, she wed her third husband, film producer Mike Todd, in 1957. This was the only marriage of Taylor’s that didn’t end in divorce, as Todd died in a plane crash just a year after they tied the knot.
As a wedding gift, Todd presented Taylor with an antique tiara dated to 1880.
“When Mike gave me this jewel, he said to me: ‘You are my queen, and I think you should have a tiara,'” Taylor wrote in “My Love Affair with Jewelry.”
She sported the diamond diadem at the 1957 Oscars and later at the Cannes Film Festival.
Taylor’s tiara fetched $4.2 million at auction in 2011.
Where Is All of Elizabeth Taylor’s Legendary Jewelry Today & Who Owns It Now? See the Collection Worth Millions [PHOTOS]
The Massoni Monkeys, $290,500
One of Taylor’s greatest friendships was with the King of Pop, Michael Jackson. The singer showered Taylor with lavish gifts, including an exotic suite of Massoni jewels that were once owned by the Baron and Baroness di Portanova. Dated to 1960, the diamond, emerald and ruby-encrusted set, which comprises a necklace and earrings, features monkey motifs and gold banana pendants. Jackson purchased the jewels from a 2000 Christie’s sale.
At the 2011 Christie’s auction, Taylor’s Massoni monkeys were sold for $290,500.
Below, see more of Elizabeth Taylor’s jewelry and where it is today.
Launch Gallery: Where Is All of Elizabeth Taylor's Legendary Jewelry Today & Who Owns It Now? See the Collection Worth Millions [PHOTOS]
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