Elizabeth Taylor's life in jewellery
27.02.16
Today, one of the most iconic Hollywood stars Elizabeth Taylor would have been celebrating her 84th birthday. Her personal life constantly attracted universal attention. She was married eight times to seven men, endured serious illnesses, and led a jet set lifestyle, building up one of the world’s most expensive private jewellery collections.
In fact, jewellery was one of her greatest passions. By the time she was in her thirties, Taylor already owned an outstanding set of Burmese rubies and diamonds from Cartier, a fantastic emerald and diamond suite from Bulgari, and the 33.19-carat Krupp diamond, a gift from her fifth husband Richard Burton.
In 2002, Taylor published My Love Affair with Jewelry, where she offers a personal guided tour of her collection. She takes us into her confidence, sharing personal anecdotes, witty asides, and intimate reminiscences about her life, her loves, and her jewels.
"Here, in my own words and as I remember them, are my cherished stories about a lifetime of fun and love and laughter...I've never thought of my jewellery as trophies. I'm here to take care of it and to love it, for we are only temporary custodians of beauty."
Elizabeth Taylor
Here are the most famous pieces of jewellery form Taylor’s famous collection.
- DIAMOND TIARA, 1957
Mike Todd, Taylor’s third husband, gave her this tiara and said: "You're my queen, and I think you should have a tiara".
“I wore it for the first time when we went to the Academy Awards. It was the most perfect night, because Mike's film Around the World in 80 Days won for Best Picture. It wasn't fashionable to wear tiaras then, but I wore it anyway, because he was my king."
- CARTIER RUBY SUITE, 1957
Todd presented her with a Cartier diamond-and-ruby set while she was swimming. She wrote:
“I got out and put my arms around him, and he said, ‘Wait a minute, don't joggle your tiara’. Because I was wearing the tiara he had bought for me in the pool!
He was holding a red leather box, and inside was a ruby-and-diamond bib necklace, which glittered in the warm light. It was like the sun, lit up and made of red fire. First Mike put it around my neck and smiled. Then he bent down and put matching earrings on me. Next came the bracelet.
Since there was no mirror around, I had to look into the water. The jewellery was glorious, rippling red on blue like a painting. I shrieked with joy, put my arms around Mike's neck, and pulled him into the pool after me. It was a perfect summer day and a day of perfect love."
- DIAMOND CHANDELIER EARRINGS, 1957
These shoulder-dusting antique chandeliers were favorites of Taylor's, wearing them first in 1959 and 4 decades later in 1992 at the Academy Awards.
When she discovered them in a Paris boutique, they sparkled with paste (glass) gems. She wrote:
"A few months later, back in New York, I was getting ready for a party and went to put them on. I opened the box, and the earrings looked all polished up. I put them on. There was something different about how they fit. I said, 'Mike, there's something wrong with my earrings.'
He chuckled and said he'd had them made up with real diamonds!"
- BULGARI EMERALD BROOCH, 1960
"Tremblant" brooch in platinum, emeralds and diamonds from 1960. The brooch was probably given to Elizabeth Taylor by Eddie Fisher, her husband at the time. Taylor was wearing it both as a brooch and hair ornament. On the “Tremblant” pieces, flower heads are mounted on spring settings which allow them to flicker at every movement, thus marvellously radiating their light. Since the 18th century, realistic floral motifs had been a constant theme in French jewellery.
- BULGARI NECKLACE, 1962
On a break from shooting Cleopatra, Taylor took a stroll to Bulgari with Richard Burton.
"Richard was so romantic that he'd use any excuse to give me a piece of jewellery," Taylor wrote.
"He'd give me ‘It's a beautiful day' presents or 'Let's go for a walk' presents. Over the years I've come to think of these as my 'It's Tuesday, I love you' jewellery."
Taylor was given a choice between two spectacular emerald necklaces. "I tried on the huge one, then the smaller one, the huge one, then the smaller one. By this time, we had been joined by Bob, a dear friend and Richard's dresser for years. Richard asked him which he preferred. Bob couldn't decide either. I tried them on one more time and said, 'Richard, I think I like the smaller one.'
Bob said, 'Mr. B., you can't hardly get girls like that no more!'"
- THE KRUPP DIAMOND, 1968
Burton paid over 300 thousand dollars for the 33.19-carat Harry Winston ring in 1968.
"This remarkable stone is called the Krupp diamond because it had been owned by Vera Krupp, of the famous munitions family that helped knock off millions of Jews," wrote Taylor.
"When it came up for auction in the late 1960s, I thought how perfect it would be if a nice Jewish girl like me were to own it. In truth, though, there's nothing funny about the Krupp. When I look into it, the deep Asscher cuts-which are so complete and ravishing-are like steps that lead into eternity and beyond. With its sparks of red and white and blue and purple, and on and on, really, it sort of hums with its own beatific life. To me, the Krupp says, 'I want to share my chemistry-my magic-with you.'"
- THE TAYLOR-BURTON DIAMOND, 1969
The most famous gemstone given to Taylor is a 69.42 carat pear-shaped diamond. It was purchased by Richard Burton at auction for over $1 million, and was originally set in a ring. "But even for me it was too big," Taylor said. "So we had Cartier design a necklace."
- BULGARI SAPPHIRE NECKLACE, 1969
Burton once said:
"The only word Elizabeth knows in Italian is Bulgari".
Certainly, she happily accepted his gift of a diamond-and-sapphire sautoir necklace featuring a 321-carat Burmese sapphire pendant.
- VAN CLEEF & ARPELS NECKLACE, 1993
When Taylor received the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Academy Award for her anti-AIDS activism, she borrowed a white-and-yellow-diamond daisy necklace with chrysoprase leaves by Van Cleef & Arpels to go with her yellow Valentino dress. After the evening, Elizabeth decided it was her good-luck necklace and bought it.
