«NYou can’t possess the brilliance, you can only admire it.” Elizabeth Taylor said it referring to one of her greatest passions: jewellery. Words that seem to describe herself. Every time a piece from his extraordinary collection re-emerges into the spotlight, his myth lights up again.
To confirm this, the fabulous Taj Mahal necklace, a large heart diamond set in a setting of red stone and jade. Built, it is said, around 1627, it was inherited by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan who donated it to his wife Mumtaz Mahal, the sovereign to whom the famous Taj Mahal is dedicated, the mausoleum in Agra, India, symbol of eternal love.
After centuries, the jewel entered the hands of the Cartier maison and finally reached the divabecoming one of the most precious treasures of his collection. She recently reappeared in Los Angeles on the red carpet of the world premiere of Wuthering Heightsfilm by Emerald Fennell, based on the novel by Emily Brontë, focusing on the tormented story between Catherine and Heathcliff, the necklace shone around the neck of the film’s leading actress, Margot Robbieimmediately evoking another stormy passion: the one between Elizabeth Taylor and the actor Richard Burton. It was he, with whom she married twice, who gave it to her for her fortieth birthday.
Liz Taylor on her 40th birthday wearing the famous Taj Mahal necklace as a gift from Richard Burton. Next to the necklace and, on the right, Margot Robbie at the premiere of “Wuthering Heights” last January. (Getty Images)
The gorgeous token of love almost stole the show for Robbiesetting social media on fire, and was also a tribute to the style of one of the greatest movie stars of all time. «At her best, Elizabeth Taylor is simply an electric charge. An erotic vibration that passes through the space between the face and the lens. It is an extrasensory, pagan phenomenon” wrote the sociologist Camille Paglia in Sex, Art, and American Culture: Essays (Random House), also defining it a “prefeminist woman” and identifying precisely in this the source of its continued relevance.
First actress to negotiate a million dollar contract, entrepreneur and activist, bold, ironic and passionate, with her blue gaze so intense it seems purple, Elizabeth Taylor left an indelible mark. Magnetic performer and incandescent diva, she remains an emblem of unrepeatable glamor and among the first examples of modern celebrity: independent, rebellious, controversial, capable of transforming her image into an instrument of power.
Taylor Swift’s tribute to Liz Taylor
Fifteen years after his death on March 23, 2011and 65 years after the night he won his first Oscar for Venus in minkshowing the tracheotomy scar caused by pneumonia that almost killed her, her ability to fascinate remains intact.
Taylor Swift dedicated a song to her in her latest album The Life of a Showgirl, celebrating a star who, like her, was able to defy expectations and rewrite the rules. «His story is about his enormous influence on cinema, fashion, jewelry, philanthropy and culture» he explains Mitch Erzinger, archivist of “The Elizabeth Taylor Archive”, established in 2015 which houses personal objects, stage and evening clothes, jewellery, photographs, documents and private notes of the diva. Today a part of the heritage is finally accessible thanks to a digitized online selection, including the drawings of Nibbles and Methe book written and illustrated by Taylor at thirteen, and the honors for his humanitarian commitment.
There are few actresses who have become legends like her. Born in London on 27 February 1932 to American parentsi, father an art dealer and mother a former actress, Taylor made his film debut in 1942. But it was the film Grand Prixwhen she was twelve years old, to project her into the Olympus of the stars.
50 films in 60 years of career
She spent her youth between sets and lessons at the school set up in the studios of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the major that had signed her: «We have one of her school essays» says Erzinger «in which she writes: “I understood what I love most about being in the cinema: the people. Not only those you work with, but also those who write to you from all over the world and watch you wherever you go: it gives you a wonderful feeling of friendship, understanding and love”. Here, at just 15 years old, Elizabeth already traces the underlying theme of her life: compassion for humanity, as well as the care and protection of her own image and relationship with the public.”
From the beginning Taylor, with rare determination, stood up to directors and producers, managing to distance themselves from the mechanisms of the film companies, which tried to decide on the entire existence of the actors. Her extraordinary beauty and almost obsessive focus on her intense private life – she married eight times – attempted to overshadow her talent. Because Elizabeth Taylor should be remembered above all for being a great actress. In his almost sixty-year career he acted in over 50 films, winning two Oscars out of five nominations, the second in 1967 for Who’s afraid of Virginia Woolf?where she fell overwhelmingly, as she grew older, into the role of Martha, a furious and disillusioned wife.
He also worked on television, always reinventing himself with a surprising modernity. His performances in films such as The Giant are unforgettable, where, with the character of Leslie, he goes through over forty years of life, or Cat on a Hot Tin Roofin which she plays Maggie, a woman who tries in vain to seduce her husband who cannot love her. The costumes of this film consecrated her as a fashion icon: the white chiffon cocktail dress became a bestseller when the costume designer Helen Rose proposed it for her ready-to-wear line, while the white slip by Juel Park crowned her a global sex symbol.
Taylor’s looks, shown on and off the set, continue to profoundly influence fashion. From Dolce&Gabbana to Fausto Puglisi up to Antonio Marras and Demna, who, for the Balenciaga haute couture Autumn 2025 collection, replicated that sensual slipdress, the slip dress that drove the world crazy, making Kim Kardashian, a lifelong Taylor fan and also producer of the documentary Elizabeth Taylor: Rebel Superstar, wear it on the catwalk, along with diamond earrings belonging to the unforgettable diva.
The Venus slip dress in mink (1960) that Balenciaga revived and made Kim Kardashian wear. (Contrast)
Liz Taylor’s relationship with Italian fashion
Most of Taylor’s jewels, including the famous Peregrina pearl, and her most iconic pieces wardrobes were sold at auction shortly after his death. The Archive, however, preserves real treasures, including costume designer Irene Sharaff’s yellow wedding dress for her first wedding to Burtonthe Chicago jacket by Yves Saint Laurent for Dior elHalston’s red dresstailor-made for the 1976 Oscars.
For jewellery, the highlight is precisely the Taj Mahal necklace. «Taylor was one of the first great actresses to consciously build her image through fashion, cultivating relationships with designers destined to become fundamental such as Karl Lagerfeld or Marc Bohan» says Erzinger.
Valentino stands out among them all, who Taylor “discovered” when he arrived in Rome to shoot the blockbuster Cleopatra. The designer, in fact, considered her one of his most important muses. The experience in the capital marked a watershed for her. It influenced her style: «If before she mainly wore Dior and Chanel, in Italy Elizabeth fell in love with creatives such as Valentino or Emilio Pucci, Irene Galitzine, Carosa and Mirsa, without forgetting his affinity for Bulgari jewels» underlines Erzinger.
Elizabeth Taylor spotted in Emilio Pucci at London’s Heathrow Airport after her second Oscar. (Photo by PA Images via Getty Images)
The meeting with Richard Burton
Not only that. On the set of Cleopatraher first film for which she negotiated a historic fee after the end of her contract with MGM, she fell madly in love with Richard Burton, who played the role of Mark Antony. Their whirlwind passion, chased by the paparazziwhich broke out while both were still engaged in other marriages, it even provoked a reaction from the Vatican. «She was one of the first influencers and the first multifaceted» writes Kate Andersen Brower in Elizabeth Taylor: The Grit and Glamor of an Icon (Harper), also remembering how Taylor is was among the first known faces to publicly admit alcohol and drug addictiongoing to hospital to detoxify.
Always herself and combative, he went through different seasons of life, managing to transform media attention into a resource. She launched perfumes and jewelery and even wrote a book to help women regain their self-esteem.
The most touching legacy, however, remains that linked to activism. In an age of stigma and fear, he was the first global celebrity to speaking out against AIDS, co-founding AmfAR in 1987 and creating the Elizabeth Taylor Aids Foundation. «Letters and notes testify to a concrete, daily commitment made up of courage and dedication» observes Erzinger, who, if he had to describe Elizabeth Taylor with just one word, would choose: “heart”.
«Beyond the glamor and excesses that punctuated his life, Elizabeth has always believed in the fundamental right to human dignity», he concludes. «Producer David O. Selznick wrote to her in 1944 that she had the opportunity to contribute to the happiness of the world. I believe she kept that promise.”