Shining Through Scandal: The Incredible Life Of Elizabeth Taylor

Elizabeth Taylor Sold This Diamond To Help Build An African Hospital

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The following year, Richard Burton bought Elizabeth Taylor the Taylor-Burton Diamond. The then 69-karat diamond (it has since been cut to 68-karats) was too heavy for Taylor to wear on her finger, so she commissioned an $80,000 diamond necklace to set it in, which was designed to conveniently cover Taylor’s tracheotomy scar from 1961. Elizabeth Taylor publicly debuted her sparkling necklace at the 42nd Academy Awards in 1970 and at Grace Kelly’s, then-known as Princess Grace of Monaco, 40th birthday party. Taylor herself ended up selling the diamond in 1979 and donated some of the proceeds to help build a hospital in Botswana.