It is a piece of jewelry made from a valuable gemstone or metal, but most people use this term to describe stones set in any precious metals that they considered as a whole piece of art, made up of a metal base and gems.
The most expensive jewelry pieces always used diamonds to make them shine. Diamond is the hardest stone in the world, it is a common belief that only diamond can cut another diamond.
It does not look like a real gemstone but its strength reflects light very nicely.
In general, people wish it will make their love stronger. Diamonds are known as a girl’s best friend, but they are the most expensive stones after emeralds because synthetic diamonds are created in labs and not mined deep within the Earth which makes them more affordable than natural ones.
Here is our list of the 10 most expensive jewelry pieces in the world:
10. The Perfect Pink
The stone has a very unique history. It was bought in 2009 by Sheikh Saud Bin Mohammed Al-Thani, the billionaire who owned many homes, cars, and real estate properties in several European countries.
His family is one of the richest families in Qatar and he had a military career before buying this pink gemstone. Many expensive jewelry pieces were found in his home when he died in a strange car accident. There is no proof that this was the real reason for his death, but it’s very strange that he also has a helicopter crash two months later after buying the piece of jewelry.
This stone was originally found in Brazil at Bahia and it weighed 59.60 carats. It was sold for $23 million to a London-based jeweler who made a replica from synthetic emeralds and renamed it The Pink Dream.
When the new owner died, the original diamond was auctioned again by Sotheby’s, then bought by an ancient Chinese collector through telephone bidding for $28 million dollars.
9. The Winston Blue
In November 2014, Christie’s auctioned this piece of jewelry from its Geneva branch. The diamond was named after the owner Evelyn De Rothschild for winning a tennis match in 1968. He used his prize money to buy this gemstone and it is believed that he gave it as a gift to his wife who was American Singer Lynn Wyatt.
This stone has an interesting story because it was originally owned by two famous families, but both stories were secret at first. In 1962, a certain Max Klein found a blue diamond in the Kimberley Mine and sent it over to London where jeweler Wartski examined the stone.
They found out that the size of the rough diamond would be about 115 carats after cutting which is almost as big as two golf balls. They bought it for a very low price during the war and sold it for a much higher price after the war ended.
8. The Wittelsbach-Graff Diamond
The 5th largest cushion-shaped diamond was owned by Prince Albert and it is the property of the House of Wittelsbach since 1487. The family still owns other precious jewelry pieces, but this one is their most expensive gemstone ever.
This stone’s history has been very interesting because during WW2 it was kept in a safe along with other valuable items to protect them from thieves and corrupt officials who were stealing money from German people at that time.
Until 1950, the royal family finally became rich again and moved into a bigger house that they named Château de Berne which has remained their official residence since then. Charles Duke of Orleans came back to Europe and married Princess Henrietta Anne Stuart in December 1661 and gave her the precious diamond as a wedding gift.
7. Hutton-Mdivani Jadeite Necklace by Cartier
This necklace made of jadeite was worn by actress Elizabeth Taylor when she attended President Richard Nixon’s Dinner in 1970.
His wife bought the accompanying earrings and bracelet set for $1 million in 1967, but they became very famous after he filmed “The Taming of The Shrew” with Elizabeth Taylor.
6. The Orange – $36 Million
This is the largest flawless fancy vivid orange diamond in the world. Its color is so intense that many jewelers say it has an explosive feel to it because of its fiery quality.
No one knows the exact history of this gemstone, but it is believed to be owned by an anonymous person who bought it for $36 million in November 2014. Cartier has kept this piece of jewelry in its showcase during events like SIHH or Salon Prive shows.
5. Pink Emerald-Cut Graff Diamond
This is the most expensive item ever sold by Sotheby’s which held the highest sale price in their auction last November. Many wealthy people wanted to buy this gemstone and there were several buyers who tried to outbid each other until Lawrence Graff bought it for $23 million more than its original price.
There were many rumors about this beautiful piece of jewelry because it was owned by a famous businessman Andrey Melnichenko, but he denied those stories and said that his wife gave him the diamond as a gift back in 2006. The couple has another special treasure, which is “The Blue” diamond; however, they decided not to sell it at an auction.
4. L’Incomparable Necklace by Cartierier
This is the most expensive diamond necklace ever found in history. It has a price of $71.2 million.
The necklace was first owned by French Empress Eugenie who wore it at the opening of the Suez Canal back in 1869 to thank for its construction, which is very important nowadays because many ships are passing through it.
But this was not her only reason to own the L’Incomparable Necklace, she also wanted to show off her beauty and status as an Empress so she resigned from wearing all of her other jewels just for this special day.
On the last day of the event, she decided to sell it even though many people were disappointed with that decision because they thought that if somebody else wore this jewel, their appearance won’t be as beautiful as hers.
In 1878, a Belgian Duke named Henry of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha bought it from her for $6,000 and he gave it to his Duchess who was called Maria Anna Victoria Angelica Philomena Xaveria Theresia Ines Agnes Joanna Leopoldina Franziska Stanislava Lucia Pilar von Habsburg-Lothringen.
The husband told the wife that this is not just a mere expensive item but also a symbol of their true love because diamonds are always known as eternal stones without any change or scratches on their surface throughout the years.
The necklace stayed in Belgium until recently when a Brazilian entrepreneur mogul Antonio Bonchristiano offered the Duke’s family a huge amount of money for them to sell it back.
3. Pink Star Diamond Ring by Sotheby’s
The retail price of the Pink Star Diamond is $83 million-plus tax incentives and adjustments for inflation. The diamond was discovered in South Africa and it took almost 10 years before the owner of the “Pink Star Diamond” decided to sell this expensive item.
It was sold at Sotheby’s auction house in November 2013 to an unnamed buyer over the phone. In South Africa, its original name was Steinmetz Pink, then it was called several other names like Royal Blue before finally, its owner decided to name it as Pink Star now.
The pink color comes from the boron element (boron nitride) that is mixed with white diamonds when crystallized within the rough diamond before the cutting process is done. Before this masterpiece was cut into a round shape, it weighed 102.5 carats but now its size has been reduced to 63.49 carats with a 54% of transparency and 0% of blemishes on its surface.
The Pink Star Diamond is currently mounted on a ring design made by famous jeweler Robert Mouawad. The ring has 270 round-cut white diamonds that weigh 4-5 carats each; they are set in the pink diamond’s pavilion (the base) and shoulder (the side).
On the top of the diamond, there is another 19.78-carat white diamond called “Laurentian” which is also mounted on an invisible rectangular mount to keep these two together more firmly.
2. Peacock Brooch by Graff Diamonds
It is a 52.48-carat gemstone and it has a $55 million dollar price which was created by the masterful hands of world-famous jeweler Laurence Graff in 2010. It took one year to complete but the result is astonishing because this brooch looks like a real peacock and not just a piece of stone mounted on another metal base.
The colors that come from inside the stone are changing as you change its surface reflection angle or illumination.
This beautiful masterpiece can be seen at the London branch of Graff Diamonds today, where you can examine it closely to take pleasure in its exceptional details such as tail feathers made up from 163 diamonds set on a platinum band with 138 round cut diamonds on the sides of the peacock body.
1. Hope Diamond
It is the strongest blue diamond in the world. It was owned by King Louis XIV of France, until now it is owned by Smithsonian Museum in the United States. Its price is $250 million dollars.
What makes this gem so precious? The Hope Diamond is a diamond that weighs 45.52 carats and has been mounted to another brilliant-cut white diamond that weighs 22.68 carats. It has a deep blue color and it also has many other colors inside its stone which are red, orange, yellow, and brownish which look like a fire under sunlight.
This stone can be found in India but nowadays, all rough diamonds are shipped to Europe or America to find the best cutters for them because they have more experience than local cutters.
The Hope Diamond was first discovered between 1650-1670 by famous French gemstone hunter Jean-Baptiste Tavernier, who was the first person to figure out that it’s a real diamond. After digging up, he sold it to King Louis XIV of France and called it “Blue Diamond of the Crown” as one part of the royal collection at the Palace of Versailles.
Do you have a diamond ring, necklace, or another piece of jewelry that was given to you by a loved one
If so, then it’s likely worth more than you think. In fact, some pieces are worth thousands and even millions of dollars! You might be surprised at what your jewelry is really worth. And if not – maybe now is the time to get rid of it and make some money back on your investment.
So whether you need cash for an emergency or just want to sell your old diamond ring for something new – we can help.
Stop by our office today with all your items and receive top dollar for them right away! It’s quick, easy, and completely confidential.
