Nothing says I love you like a giant rock, Richard Burton certainly wore his heart on his sleeve when he gave Elizabeth Taylor this 33 carat asscher cut stunner known as the "Krupp" diamond. Once owned by Vera Krupp, as in the infamous Krupp family who supplied Nazi Germany with its ammunition. Liz thought it was fitting that a nice Jewish girl such as herself should end up with this beauty! She wears it everyday and in every film, it cost $305,000 when they acquired it in 1968, our guess is it's worth millions today. As the Jewel Snob tells her husband often, diamonds are as good investments as real estate!
Should you be as lucky in love as Liz, send your man to Harry Winston for a similar stunner. For more practical guys, Diamond.com and Mondera.com have fantastic prices for loose stones!
No matter where you get your bling, remember the 4 C's, carat size (bigger is better only in top quality diamonds!), cut (depending on your personality, The Jewel Snob prefers asscher/emerald cuts), color (never sacrifice color!), and clarity (you can get away with a lesser clarity if you've got a D color rock that faces up well).
Dear Jewel Snob,
I enjoy reading your column and today I see that there an image of me in the background of the photo of Elizabeth showing off her ring. I would like to get a print of it as she sent me one from that occasion that I don't like. I was head of Sotheby's jewelry department then and had just delivered the diamond ring to her and Richard at the Dorchester Hotel in London. The day the photo was taken were were in Bristol going to a party given by Richard's brother to celebrate something I can't remember.
Yours sincerely,
Ward Landrigan