"This remarkable stone is called the Krupp diamond because it had been owned by Vera Krupp of the famous munitions family ... When I look into it, the deep Asscher cuts, which are so complete and so ravishing--are like steps that lead into eternity and beyond."
Elizabeth Taylor, My Love Affair with Jewelry
Elizabeth Taylor, My Love Affair with Jewelry
 Taylor and Burton, and the Krupp Diamond |  Princess Margaret, 1965; Photo by Cecil Beaton |
Equally capable of great acts of extravagance and kindness, Elizabeth Taylor was a paradox. Manufactured at the MGM dream factory, she was every inch the Hollywood glamorous Hollywood movie star. Yet she was the least fabricated of them all. In her own inimitable way, Elizabeth Taylor was salt-of-the-earth, or to put it in the vernacular she herself sometimes used; she was a broad.
What Elizabeth Taylor was not, however, was a pushover. Consider her genius at convincing friends, lovers, husbands, and even new acquaintances to buy her expensive jewelry. The apotheosis was in 1968 when her then-husband Richard Burton gave her the infamous Krupp Diamond. He paid $307,000, an outrageous price at the time. It made international headlines. Yet it proved to be a shrewd investment. After Taylor's 2011 death, it sold for nearly $9,000,000.
In 1982, Taylor wore her Krupp Diamond (set in a ring) to a Kensington Palace dinner party. Throughout the evening, Princess Margaret repeatedly snubbed Taylor. The most glaring was when the princess remarked that the Krupp diamond was "the most vulgar thing" she had ever seen. The glamorous movie star permitted the persnickety royal to win that round, but it was not the end of the matter.
When Taylor and Princess Margaret saw each other at party a few weeks later, Taylor laid her trap. Again wearing the Krupp Diamond. she asked Margaret if she would like to try it on. After the princess eagerly slipped on the ring, Taylor inquired, "Doesn’t look so vulgar now, does it?"
What Elizabeth Taylor was not, however, was a pushover. Consider her genius at convincing friends, lovers, husbands, and even new acquaintances to buy her expensive jewelry. The apotheosis was in 1968 when her then-husband Richard Burton gave her the infamous Krupp Diamond. He paid $307,000, an outrageous price at the time. It made international headlines. Yet it proved to be a shrewd investment. After Taylor's 2011 death, it sold for nearly $9,000,000.
In 1982, Taylor wore her Krupp Diamond (set in a ring) to a Kensington Palace dinner party. Throughout the evening, Princess Margaret repeatedly snubbed Taylor. The most glaring was when the princess remarked that the Krupp diamond was "the most vulgar thing" she had ever seen. The glamorous movie star permitted the persnickety royal to win that round, but it was not the end of the matter.
When Taylor and Princess Margaret saw each other at party a few weeks later, Taylor laid her trap. Again wearing the Krupp Diamond. she asked Margaret if she would like to try it on. After the princess eagerly slipped on the ring, Taylor inquired, "Doesn’t look so vulgar now, does it?"
 The Krupp Diamond |  "My Love Affair with Jewelry" at the Sunset Tower |
A copy of My Love Affair with Jewelry signed by Elizabeth Taylor is currently available via the Nick Harvill Libraries kiosk at the Sunset Tower Hotel in West Hollywood.
Image Credits: My Love Affair with Jewelry and Beaton in Vogue
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