Billionaire and media mogul Kim Kardashian finally wore the Princess Diana-owned pendant she bought last year. Kardashian debuted the amethyst and diamond cross crucifix, purchased in January 2023 for £163,800 (roughly $265,000 Cdn), at the LACMA Art+Film Gala in Los Angeles on Saturday. Made by former crown jeweller Garrard in the 1920s, the pendant is in the “fleurée” style, marked by its flowery design. The purple amethysts, which make up the arms of the cross, are square-cut and accented by 5.25 carats of circular-cut diamonds. The full piece is roughly 136 x 95 mm. It was first loaned to Diana in the late ’80s, a period in which the Princess of Wales “became known for bolder fashion choices reflecting how she had begun to take autonomy in her life,” according to the Sotheby’s lot sale.
While the fine art broker’s website says Diana went on to wear the pendant many more times, the only available image of her sporting it comes from a 1987 charity gala supporting human rights during pregnancy and childbirth. Following Diana’s death in 1997, it was purchased by businessman Naim Attallah, whose family kept it — unworn — until it was sold to Kardashian. When a representative for Kardashian won the item in the final five minutes of the auction last year, it went for considerably above predictions. Kardashian paid more than twice the lower estimates from Sotheby’s, and still above their highest projected figure.
The cross is among a litany of expensive fashion history Kardashian has acquired. According to W Magazine, she owns everything from Jackie Kennedy’s Cartier watch to Elizabeth Taylor’s diamond and jade bracelets to an outfit Janet Jackson wore in her If music video. Pricetags for the museum-level fashion collection range up to roughly $400,000 US (for Kennedy’s watch) and include pieces bought for her children. For example, Kardashian and ex-husband Ye gifted their then six-year-old daughter North a velvet jacket and a hat worn by Michael Jackson. Jackson wore the latter in his Smooth Criminal music video.
While Diana paired the cross with a baroque, dark purple Catherine Walker gown, Kardashian opted for an all-white Gucci bodysuit, maxi skirt and long draping coat. The bodysuit featured a plunging neckline, while Kardashian accentuated the pendant with a large pearl choker and shortened pearl chain.
Online backlash against that styling for a religious symbol — as well as the potential for damaging a historical piece by wearing it — has already begun. “At least show respect to the cross with what you wear,” wrote one user on X. “Just because you can buy something doesn’t mean you should. Some items carry historical significance that money can’t measure,” wrote another. The reaction echoes responses to Kardashian reportedly damaging the Marilyn Monroe dress she borrowed and wore to the 2022 Met Gala red carpet. After she returned it, collector Scott Fortner shared photos of the dress, which Monroe famously wore to serenade U.S. president John F. Kennedy for his 45th birthday, and claimed there was buckled fabric and missing crystals. “So much for keeping ‘the integrity of the dress and the preservation,"” he wrote in an Instagram post at the time. “Was it worth it?”
But Sotheby’s head of jewelry, Kristian Spofforth, had a different outlook on Kardashian’s ownership of the Attallah Cross. “This is a bold piece of jewelry by its size, colour and style which cannot fail to make a vibrant statement, whether it be of faith or fashion — or indeed both,” he was quoted as saying in a press release at the time. “We are delighted that this piece has found a new lease of life within the hands of another globally famous name.”