6 multimillion dollar timepieces and jewellery for Bling Empire types

“If you have to ask how much it costs, you can’t afford it.” So goes the infamous saying by J.P. Morgan, but according to some, not only do billionaires ask for the price, they also ask for a discount! In the world of luxury, prices do matter so humour us for a moment and imagine that money is no object (like it is for those in the world of Bling Empire).

For all the millionaires and billionaires out there, here are six of the most stunning multimillion-dollar timepieces and jewellery items to add to your collection:

Patek Philippe Ref. 6301P Grande Sonnerie

Price: Over HK$10 million 

Released in November last year, the Patek Philippe Ref. 6301P Grande Sonnerie will go down in horological history as the first wristwatch that features just a grande sonnerie that’s not combined with other complications. It’s a request that many Patek fans have been clamouring for and finally, it has come to be. For those not familiar with the watchmaking jargon, grande sonnerie automatically strikes the full hours and the quarter hours, and is very rarely seen on a watch.

In this rather subtly designed piece, the grande sonnerie is complemented with a petite sonnerie (which does not strike the quarter hours), a minute repeater (strikes on demand), and a patented jumping subsidiary seconds. Whilst not a limited edition, given its technical complexity it’s safe to assume that very few pieces will be up for grabs at any given time.  

Bulgari Barocko blue sapphire necklace

Price: Over HK$21.5 million 

Bulgari had just released its latest Baroque-inspired high jewellery collection, Barocko, and as expected, in it are pieces that will make your jaw drop. One of which is this platinum necklace set with a 45.57-carat Cornflower blue sapphire, which is surrounded by round brilliant-cut diamonds, buff-top sapphires and pavé-set diamonds.

Inspired by Palazzo Barberini, the ornately decorated residence of the papal family, this necklace was created with volume, opulence and intricacy as the goal, which needless to say, has been met with flying colours. The cornucopia of stones notwithstanding, it was the expertise and craftsmanship involved that makes this quite the masterpiece, which unsurprisingly, took upwards of 800 hours to finish.

Richard Mille RM 56-02 Sapphire Tourbillon watch

Price: Around HK$17 million

The RM 56-02 Sapphire Tourbillon is one of Richard Mille’s pricier and most impressive models, and in the world of Richard Mille, that is saying a lot. In the absence of any huge jewels, what then makes this watch so special and worthy of that eye-watering price? Well, its case is made of pure sapphire, and so are its baseplate, bridges and third wheel. Perhaps unknown to many, sapphire is extremely hard registering a hardness of 1800 Vickers or 9 Moh’s, making it virtually scratch resistant by materials other than a diamond.

The watch’s case is milled and ground from blocks of solid sapphire, an imaginable task that required 40 days, 24/7 of continuous machining to produce a single case, followed by 400 hours of machining and finishing for the different movement bridges. First released in 2014, the RM 56-02 is limited to only 10 pieces worldwide.

Van Cleef & Arpels Merveille d’émeraudes necklace

Price: Over HK$104.5 million

Everyone likes a good story, and you can leave it to Van Cleef & Arpels not only to create masterful jewels but also provide a beautiful narrative behind it. Case in point is this Merveille d’émeraudes necklace, which is inspired by a magnificent collaret necklace once owned by Princess Faiza of Egypt that was customised for her in 1929.

More than 90 years later, the French maison reimagines the piece with a spectacular necklace set with five Colombian emeralds totalling 70.40 carats cut in slender pear shapes, which were once split into two pear shapes to show more of the delicate and unique make-up of the emeralds. Van Cleef & Arpels preserves its original form but this time is presented with diamond-encrusted ribbons. Staying true to the Faiza necklace where we see the clasp hanging low at the back, the necklace features a diamond train that falls dramatically on nape of the wearer. 

Cartier Magnitude Dioscures diamond necklace

Price: HK$200 million

If you’re inclinations lean more towards a multitude of sizeable flawless white diamonds, you can go for this stunning Cartier diamond necklace. An homage to a 1903 set of transformable Japanese-inspired Fern Spray brooches that is now part of the Cartier Collection, the Dioscures platinum diamond-studded necklace that hails from the house’s Magnitude high jewellery collection features two exquisite pear-shaped diamonds – one 26.37 carats and the other 26.35 carats, both in D IF quality – which is surrounded by 107 D IF pear-shaped diamonds totaling 93.93 carats. Just like the set it was patterned after, the centre stones can also be worn as earrings. 

Cindy Chao 2018 Black Label Masterpiece XXI Ribbon brooch

Price: Over HK$116 million

Should you desire to wear over a hundred million dollars’ worth on your lapel, Cindy Chao’s Black Label Masterpiece Ribbon Brooch is it. Set with over 2,000 closely set Pigeon blood rubies on an undulating ribbon made in titanium, Chao through this piece brings to the fore her expertise in creating richly textured but unbelievably light jewelled pieces. The star of the piece is an antique brilliant-cut diamond that weighs an astounding 76.91carats. Fair warning though, you just might be upstaged by this not-so-subtle pin.

See also: 10 watches from Trevor Noah’s jaw-dropping watch collection