Arushi Sakhuja
Recently, when Nita Ambani gifted Shloka Mehta, when she became a part of the Ambani family, she chose a gorgeous necklace the L’Incomparable Diamond Necklace by Lebanese jeweller Mouawad. The necklace made headlines for reportedly being the most valuable necklace in the world. It features the largest internally flawless diamond in the world, and cost a whopping USD 55 million (nearly INR 450 crores approx) undoubtedly making it one of the most expensive pieces in the world. It features a flawless 407.48-carat yellow diamond pendant along with a 229.52 carat white diamond necklace, and is intertwined by 18-karat rose gold branchlets. The rose gold chain is adorned with 91 other diamonds, adding another 200 carats to the necklace.
However, reports suggest that Shloka’s necklace was displayed at Sotheby’s in 2022, with some changes made to the diamonds. The diamond was re-cut to improve its shape and increase its depth and lustre and due to this, the weight of the necklace has been reduced to 104.38 carats. At the same time, the yellow coloured diamond has been changed to 303.10 carats as well. But the necklace still maintains its prestige.
Be it the Kohinoor, a rare variety of a pink diamond or a piece of heirloom jewellery passed on over generations, the appeal of fine jewellery is emotional and intrinsically interconnected with the notion of social status. A valuable piece with a hefty price tag is often considered a keepsake.
Behold the most expensive necklace ever created ― The L’Incomparable Diamond Necklace, only made possible by Mouawad. #Mouawad #MouawadDiamondHouse #RareJewels #Diamond #GuinnessWorldRecordhttps://t.co/0dlypdX1MH pic.twitter.com/Zf28a5CWa1
— Mouawad (@mouawad) August 2, 2018
In light of that, below we’ve listed the most expensive jewellery pieces that exist around the world.
Koh-i-noor
The Koh-i-noor is known to be one of the most expensive jewellery pieces in the world. It originates from India, and the 105.6-carat Koh-i-Noor diamond is described as colourless or pure white. This amazing expensive diamond weighed an incredible 793 carats until its first cut. When it belonged to the Kakatiya dynasty, the diamond weighed 186 carats. Queen Victoria’s husband, Prince Albert, cut it to its present size to increase its lustre. Today the diamond is valued at a jaw-dropping $20 Billion.
Hope Diamond Necklace
The consensus answer to the question ‘What is the world’s most expensive piece of jewellery?’ would be the famous Hope Diamond Necklace. Taking the number one spot, the Hope Diamond was found in India in the mid-17th century. The jewelled treasure is a magnificent diamond-studded necklace with a deep-blue 45.52-carat diamond pendant, valued at approximately $350 million. The diamond is said to have come from the Golkonda mines in Southern India and has been adorned by a number of well-known people from all over the world.
The Heritage in Bloom Necklace
Yet another necklace with a three-figure price tag in dollars. The Heritage in Bloom costs $200 million and is designed by Chinese master craftsman Wallace Chan. 383.4 carats of precious stones make up the entire set, with the centrepiece’s exquisite colourless diamond alone being valued at a stunning $35 million. The necklace also has 600 pink diamonds, 114 ice-green jadeites, 72 white mutton fat jades, and 19 more divine colourless diamonds. Set with an incredible 11,551 diamonds, it weighs half a pound.
Graff Diamonds’ Peacock Brooch
Graff Diamonds launched the Peacock Brooch in 2013 at the TEFAF luxury arts and antique fair in the Netherlands, and today it is celebrated as a piece of art. Made of 1,305 gemstones including White, yellow, pink, orange, and green diamonds, the eye catching piece of jewellery has a spectacular blue diamond weighing 20.02 carats on its own. Even though it is barely 10 cm tall, the Peacock Brooch costs $100 million.
The Pink Star
This fancy vibrant pink diamond, formerly known as the Steinmetz Pink, weighs 59.6 carats and is the largest internally flawless, pink diamond. The Pink Star, which weighs 132.5 carats now, was mined by De Beers in Africa in 1999 and weighed a lot more when it was first cut and polished. It is the most costly gem ever sold at auction, fetched $71.2 million in a Sotheby’s sale in April 2017.
Apollo and Artemis Earrings
Known as the world’s most expensive earrings priced at $57.4 million, Apollo and Artemis, are a pair of pear-shaped divine diamond twins (blue for the boy and pink for the girl). They were named after the heavenly brother and sister to symbolize their great power and beauty. Perfectly matched in size, cut and tone, Apollo Blue and Artemis Pink were sold for $57.4 million in May 2017 at Sotheby’s Auction in Geneva.
The Incomparable Necklace
One of the most expensive jewellery pieces is the Incomparable necklace which is worth a jaw-dropping $55 million. The hefty price tag is mainly because of the pendant stone, a brownish-yellow diamond weighing 407.48 carats. This gem is set in rose gold and adorned with 91 white diamonds. The total weight of this parade is an amazing 637 carats.
Graff Hallucination Bracelet-Watch
Jewellery and timepieces have often come together, but this is a special piece for good reason. The most expensive piece of jewellery in the form of a bracelet-watch is the Hallucination manufactured by the Graff jewellery house. Brainchild of Laurence Graff, chairman of the board of Graff Diamonds, it was presented at Baselworld 2014 and called “a sculptural masterpiece, a glorification of the wonder of coloured diamonds.”
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