8. The Taylor-Burton diamond was insured by Lloyd’s while Elizabeth Taylor owned it
Richard Burton once confided to his diary that the 68-carat Cartier diamond he purchased for his wife, actress Elizabeth Taylor, was a gift to assuage her anger at him for making disparaging remarks about her hands. It cost him $1.1 million, dwarfing the $307,000 he paid for a mere 33.19 carat diamond (Krupp diamond) he had purchased for her the year before (the transgression which triggered that purchase, if there was one, was unrecorded by the actor). The report of the purchase caused long lines of people outside of Cartier’s in New York, eager to view the diamond before it was delivered to Taylor.
The diamond was insured through Lloyd’s, though the company set rules regarding the policy. It could be worn publicly no more than thirty days per year, and when not worn it had to be stored in a vault, approved by representatives of the company. When it was worn Taylor had to be accompanied by no less than three armed guards. On at least one occasion, Taylor wore both the Krupp and Cartier diamonds at the same time; Princess Grace of Monaco’s fortieth birthday party at Monte Carlo’s Hermitage Hotel. Taylor kept both diamonds after she and Burton were divorced. Both times.