It was late 1987. Princess Diana walked into a charity gala for Birthright, a group supporting mothers and babies, wearing a dress that looked like it belonged in a period drama. Catherine Walker designed it. Deep purple velvet. High ruffled collar. But honestly? Nobody was looking at the fabric. All eyes were glued to the massive, amethyst-encrusted Attallah Cross dangling from a long string of pearls.
It was bold. It was arguably "too much" for a royal. And that’s exactly why people are still obsessed with the princess diana cross pendant nearly forty years later.
Jewelry usually stays in the vault. Most royal pieces are borrowed from the Crown, meaning they have a very paper-trail-heavy history. But the Attallah Cross was different. Diana didn't own it. She didn't borrow it from the Queen. She borrowed it from a friend, Naim Attallah, who was the group chief executive of Asprey & Garrard.
She loved it. She wore it several times, most famously to that 1987 gala. Then, it vanished for decades.
The Weird Reality of the Attallah Cross
When we talk about the princess diana cross pendant, we aren't talking about a dainty little crucifix you’d find at a mall jeweler. This thing is huge. It’s a "fleurée" style cross, which basically means the ends of the arms look like flower petals.
It’s bold.
Created in the 1920s by Garrard (the same people who made her engagement ring), the pendant is set with square-cut amethysts and accented by circular-cut diamonds. The total diamond weight sits around 5.25 carats. But it's the size that hits you. It measures roughly 136 x 95mm. To put that in perspective, it’s nearly the size of a modern smartphone.
Imagine hanging that around your neck.
Diana had a knack for making heavy, traditional jewelry look effortless. She chose to pair it with a long pearl cord rather than a gold chain. This lowered the pendant to her waistline, subverting the traditional way a religious icon is usually worn. It wasn't just a piece of jewelry; it was a statement of her growing independence from the rigid fashion rules of the Palace.
The Kim Kardashian Connection
Fast forward to 2023. Sotheby’s "Royal & Noble" auction in London. The bidding starts.
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People expected a museum to buy it. Or maybe a private collector who would keep it in a dark room. Instead, the hammer fell at £163,800 (about $197,453). The buyer? A representative for Kim Kardashian.
The internet lost its mind.
Some people felt it was a "desecration" of Diana's memory. Others saw it as a savvy investment by a woman who is building a private museum of pop culture artifacts (remember the Marilyn Monroe dress debacle?). But looking at it objectively, Kardashian is doing exactly what Naim Attallah’s daughter, Ramsay Attallah, said the family hoped for: keeping the piece "alive."
It’s interesting. Diana was the most photographed woman in the world. Kim is... well, Kim. There is a weird, symbiotic link between their levels of fame, even if their lives couldn't be more different. By purchasing the princess diana cross pendant, Kardashian didn't just buy gold and amethysts. She bought a piece of the Diana "aura."
Why This Specific Cross is Historically Unique
Most of the jewelry associated with Diana ended up with her sons, William and Harry. You see Kate Middleton wearing the sapphire engagement ring or the Lover's Knot Tiara. You see Meghan Markle with the gold Cartier Tank watch. Those are family heirlooms.
The Attallah Cross is an outlier because it was a private loan.
Naim Attallah was a fascinating character himself. A Palestinian-British businessman and writer, he was a colorful figure in the London scene. He bought the cross in the 1980s because he loved it. He was friends with Diana, and according to him, she was the only person who could truly carry it off.
"When she wore it, it was magic," he often remarked.
After Diana’s death in 1997, the cross went back into the Attallah family's private collection. It was never worn by anyone else. Not once. It sat in a box for twenty years. That’s why the auction was such a big deal. It was a "virgin" piece of Diana's history that hadn't been diluted by other celebrities or socialites.
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What Makes an Amethyst "Royal"?
Amethysts have been linked to royalty and the church for centuries. Historically, the purple hue was incredibly expensive to produce as a dye, so the gemstone became a shorthand for "I am important."
In the 1920s, when Garrard made this pendant, they were leaning into a Neo-Gothic revival. It looks medieval, but the craftsmanship is distinctly Art Deco. The amethysts in the princess diana cross pendant are deep, saturated purples. They aren't the washed-out lilac stones you see in cheap costume jewelry. They are "Siberian" in quality—intense and velvety.
Misconceptions About Diana's Jewelry Collection
A lot of people think Diana was swimming in jewelry she owned personally.
Not really.
She had her "personal" collection, like the Spencer Tiara (which belonged to her father’s family) and various gifts from the Saudi Royal family. But many of the "showstopper" pieces were on permanent loan from Queen Elizabeth II.
The Attallah Cross is often confused with the "Swan Lake" necklace or her various choker arrangements. But those were usually diamonds and pearls. The use of amethyst was rare for her. It showed a side of her personality that was slightly more eccentric, slightly more willing to take a risk on a piece that wasn't "traditionally" beautiful in a dainty way.
The Value Spike
If you bought a 1920s amethyst cross today without the Diana provenance, you might pay $20,000 to $40,000.
The Kardashian price tag was roughly double the pre-auction estimate. That’s the "Diana Premium." Anything she touched, wore, or even looked at for too long becomes exponentially more valuable. It’s a phenomenon that hasn't faded. If anything, with shows like The Crown, the value of these artifacts is only going up.
Collectors call this "associative value." It’s not about the gold. It’s about the ghost.
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How to Channel the Look (Without the Six-Figure Price Tag)
You probably aren't going to outbid a billionaire at Sotheby's.
But the princess diana cross pendant started a trend that is currently resurfacing in 2026: oversized, colorful religious iconography used as fashion statements.
If you want to capture that vibe, you have to understand the mechanics of how she wore it. She didn't tuck it under a shirt. She didn't wear it with other necklaces. She let it be the "main character."
- Go Big or Go Home: Small crosses are for everyday wear. To channel Diana, you need something at least three inches long.
- Velvet is Key: There is something about the way amethysts interact with purple or black velvet. It absorbs the light and makes the stones "glow."
- The Pearl Trick: Don't use a thin gold chain. Use a long rope of pearls or even a thick silk cord. It changes the center of gravity of the outfit.
Honestly, the "Diana style" wasn't about the money. It was about the juxtaposition. She took a 1920s church-style pendant and wore it to a high-society party with a "don't mess with me" attitude.
The Future of the Attallah Cross
Will we see Kim Kardashian wear the princess diana cross pendant at the Met Gala? Probably.
Is it a good thing? It’s complicated.
Museum curators often argue that these pieces belong in climate-controlled environments. They worry about skin oils, perfume, and the risk of loss. But jewelry is meant to be worn. When it sits in a safe, it loses its "life." By moving into the hands of a high-profile collector, the cross continues to be part of the cultural conversation.
Whether you love the new ownership or hate it, you can't deny that the cross remains one of the most iconic symbols of Diana's fashion rebellion. It represents the moment she stopped being a "shy Di" and started being a woman who knew exactly how to use her image to command a room.
If you’re looking to track the history of the princess diana cross pendant, your best bet is to follow the upcoming "icon" auctions. We are seeing a massive shift where jewelry isn't just being sold to "jewelry people" anymore. It's being sold to "legacy people."
The Attallah Cross is no longer just a piece of 1920s Garrard craftsmanship. It is a permanent marker of a woman who changed the Monarchy forever.
Actionable Next Steps for Enthusiasts
If you're fascinated by this piece, don't just look at the grainy 1987 photos.
- Research the Garrard Archives: They still have sketches of the original 1920s designs. It’s wild to see how they evolved from ecclesiastical tools to fashion statements.
- Look for "Fleurée" style crosses: This is the specific search term for that "flowery" end-piece design. It’s much more unique than a standard Latin cross.
- Check the "Sotheby's Royal & Noble" results: They often release high-resolution catalogs after the sales. These catalogs contain detailed provenance notes that you won't find in news articles.
- Monitor the Secondary Market: Sites like 1stDibs or specialized vintage jewelers often see "tribute" pieces from the 1980s that were inspired by Diana's look. You can often find high-quality amethyst crosses from that era for a fraction of the cost of a new piece.