The Tiffany Diamond: Whitehouse, Hepburn, Gaga, Beyoncé

It’s been worn on red carpets since the Golden Age of cinema. It’s been the “King of Diamonds” since 1877.
And whose neck does the enormous golden gem now

Origins Of The Tiffany Diamond

In 1877, the Kimberley diamond mines in South Africa uncovered one of the world’s largest and finest yellow diamonds. A 287.42-carat rough stone, it was purchased by the founder of Tiffany’s, Charles Lewis Tiffany.

In Paris, this stone was cut into a 128.54 carat cushion shape, with an unprecedented 82 facets. Over an inch wide and seven-eighths of an inch from top to bottom, the Tiffany Diamond is impressively large, but it wasn’t cut for size. It was cut for colour, a rich, brilliant yellow that sets it apart from your average stone.

Absolute Stardom

The Tiffany Diamond was always meant to be seen. Unsurprisingly, the gem has been the highlight of exhibitions from the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago to the 2006 “Bejewelled by Tiffany” exhibition at London’s Somerset House.

The diamond has also been worn by some of the most incredible, beautiful and dynamic women to grace high society. First, in 1957, the socialite Mrs. E Sheldon Whitehouse. The second, in 1961, after it was then re-set into Jean Schlumberger’s Ribbon Rosette necklace, perfect for the one-of-a-kind Audrey Hepburn. Lady Gaga would follow afterwards, decades later, as she headed to the Academy Awards for A Star Is Born.

Beyoncé Carter-Knowles is the fourth woman, and the first black woman, to wear the Tiffany Diamond. And, in the company of her husband Jay-Z, she wears the absolute heck out of the iconic jewel. Valued at $30 million in 2019, the Tiffany Diamond is certainly something to flaunt and an incredible centrepiece for the company’s new ad campaign.