×

We've got news for you.

Register on SowetanLIVE at no cost to receive newsletters, read exclusive articles & more.
Register now

Lady Gaga wears R416m necklace featuring rare SA gem to the Oscars

Lady Gaga wearing a necklace featuring the famed Tiffany Diamond at the 91st Annual Academy Awards on February 24 2019 in Hollywood, California.
Lady Gaga wearing a necklace featuring the famed Tiffany Diamond at the 91st Annual Academy Awards on February 24 2019 in Hollywood, California.
Image: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Lady Gaga's been creating a stir since the Oscars on Sunday not only for her Best Original Song win — and her oh-so-steamy Shallow duet with Bradley Cooper — but because of her choice of accessories.

The actress paired her stunning black Alexander McQueen gown with a Tiffany & Co necklace featuring one of the world's largest fancy yellow diamonds as its centrepiece  — the historic jewel weighs a whopping 128.54 carats! 

A close-up of the Tiffany & Co necklace Lady Gaga wore to the Oscars. The central fancy yellow diamond has over 82 facets.
A close-up of the Tiffany & Co necklace Lady Gaga wore to the Oscars. The central fancy yellow diamond has over 82 facets.
Image: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Known as the Tiffany Diamond, it was discovered in 1877 in a Kimberly mine right here in good old SA. The stone was bought by Tiffany & Co founder, Charles Lewis Tiffany, a year later.

Audrey Hepburn wearing a necklace featuring the famed Tiffany Diamond in the sixties.
Audrey Hepburn wearing a necklace featuring the famed Tiffany Diamond in the sixties.
Image: Getty Images

The incredible yellow cushion-cut gem was paired with another 16 cushion-cut and 46 brilliant diamonds to create the showstopping necklace you saw at the Academy Awards.

The entire piece, which is set in platinum, is worth over $30m (about R416m), according to Vogue.

Lady Gaga's recent Oscar outing marks the first time the 141-year-old jewel has been worn on the red carpet. 

That said, Lady Gaga isn't the first actress to wear it — that honour goes to Audrey Hepburn, although the gem was set in a different necklace at the time.

The late Hollywood legend fittingly wore the Tiffany Diamond in publicity shots for her film, Breakfast at Tiffany's, in the sixties


Would you like to comment on this article?
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now.

Speech Bubbles

Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.