Some of the late Dame Elizabeth Taylor 's jewels have gone under the hammer, making an extraordinary amount of money in the process. Taylor died earlier this year after a life which saw her become one of Hollywood's brightest actors during its perceived golden age, earning two Academy Awards for Best Actress in 'Butterfield 8' in 1960 and then six years later when she starred alongside then-husband Richard Burton in 'Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?' An actress who led a highly publicised and chequered life - she married eight times - paraphernalia related to her is much sought after, but some of the figures that won items at the New York auction were simply stunning.
It's estimated that the sale of Taylor's 80 items raised around $116 million, thanks in part to a 16th century pearl which sold for $11.8 million. Another big seller was the star's famous 33.19 carat diamond ring given to her by Burton which sold for a cool $8.8 million. Known as La Peregrina, the pearl has been depicted in artwork for centuries, once being painted in the 17th century by the famous artist Velazquez; formerly owned by Mary Tudor and later Spanish Queens Margarita and Isabel, it was bought for her by Burton in 1969 for an even-then astronomical sum of $37,000.
Other items included the Taj Mahal diamond which went for $8.8 million, a tiara which went for $4.2 million, a ruby-and-diamond necklace which sold for $2 million and a diamond and sapphire ring given to Taylor by Michael Jackson which went for $600,000.