The Five Most Expensive Ruby Necklaces
The most expensive ruby necklaces show the gemstone in strikingly different forms, from Mauboussin Art Deco ruby beads to historic Boucheron and Van Cleef & Arpels designs.
Ruby necklaces can take many forms. A single important stone may anchor the design, while other jewels build their effect through multiple rubies, beads or more elaborate compositions. This flexibility gives designers room to approach the gemstone differently, placing as much emphasis on how the rubies are used as on their individual size.
That distinction becomes more pronounced at the highest levels of jewelry. Gemological characteristics remain important, but design, craftsmanship and the history of a jewel can shape how a ruby necklace is understood. The most expensive examples sold at auction since 2023 bring those considerations together in markedly different ways.
Most Expensive Ruby Necklaces
| Ruby Necklace | Notable Features | Price (USD) |
|---|---|---|
| Mauboussin Art Deco Ruby and Diamond Necklace | Circa 1930; ruby beads and tumbled rubies; adjustable design | $2.0M |
| Bulgari Unique Serpenti Rubellite, Diamond and Ruby Necklace | Serpenti design with ruby eyes, rubellite beads and diamonds | $1.3M |
| Boucheron Ruby and Diamond Necklace | Circa 1888; seven cushion-cut rubies; historic laurel-wreath design | $1.27M |
| Van Cleef & Arpels Ruby and Diamond “Gazelle” Necklace | Unheated Burmese rubies; three detachable pendants; circa 1977 | $1.1M |
| Lacloche Frères Ruby and Diamond “Cravate” Necklace | Rare signed ruby and diamond Cravate design | $754K |
1. Mauboussin Art Deco Ruby and Diamond Necklace, $2.0M
This Mauboussin Art Deco ruby and diamond necklace sold for 16.0M HKD in September 2026. Created circa 1930, the signed necklace combines tumbled rubies and ruby beads with brilliant-, old European-, square- and baguette-cut diamonds. Its adjustable construction allows it to be worn at two different lengths.
Rather than building the design around a single faceted center stone, Mauboussin used ruby beads to introduce color and movement within a geometric diamond framework. The contrast between the smooth rubies and precisely arranged diamonds reflects the house’s approach to Art Deco jewelry during this period, while the adaptable construction changes the necklace from a longer composition to a more concentrated collar.
2. Bulgari Unique Serpenti Rubellite, Diamond and Ruby Necklace, $1.3M
This unique Bulgari Serpenti necklace sold for 10.1M HKD in April 2023. Designed as a serpent, the jewel features pear-shaped ruby eyes and a diamond-set head, which extends into a necklace of rubellite beads punctuated by diamond rondelles and additional pear-shaped diamonds.
Ruby plays a small but deliberate role in the composition. Positioned as the serpent’s eyes, the stones bring concentrated red accents to a design otherwise dominated by rubellite and diamonds. The signed Bulgari setting also places the jewel within the house’s long-running Serpenti tradition, using colored gemstones to define the character of the motif.
3. Boucheron Ruby and Diamond Necklace, $1.27M
This Boucheron ruby and diamond necklace sold for $1.27M in December 2025. Dating to circa 1888, the jewel takes the form of a laurel wreath, with seven cushion-cut rubies set among leaves composed of old mine-, old European- and single-cut diamonds. The necklace was originally made for Marie-Louise Mackay and later belonged to Countess Mona Bismarck.
AGL identified six of the rubies as Burmese and one as Thai, all with no indications of heating. Beyond the gemstones themselves, the necklace is notable for its documented history and survival as an early Boucheron design. Archival research later connected the jewel to an 1888 photograph, establishing its attribution to the house decades after it had previously been catalogued simply as a 19th-century necklace.
4. Van Cleef & Arpels Ruby and Diamond “Gazelle” Necklace, $1.1M
This Van Cleef & Arpels Ruby and Diamond “Gazelle” Necklace sold for 838K CHF in November 2025. Created circa 1977, the signed jewel centers on a 5.20-carat oval ruby framed by diamonds, with additional oval rubies and diamonds extending around the necklace. Three detachable pendants are set with rubies weighing 3.56, 3.39 and 2.79 carats.
SSEF identified the rubies as Burmese in origin with no indications of heating and a minor amount of oil in their fissures. Rather than concentrating attention on one dominant stone, the design distributes the rubies across the necklace, with the detachable pendants allowing its composition to change.
5. Lacloche Frères Ruby and Diamond “Cravate” Necklace, $754K
This Lacloche Frères ruby and diamond “Cravate” necklace sold for 627K CHF in May 2026. The jewel pairs rubies and diamonds in a cravate-style necklace, a format that draws the design downward at the front in a tie-like composition.
As a signed Lacloche Frères jewel, the necklace adds another historic French jewelry house to this ranking. Its result also shows the range of designs represented among the most expensive ruby necklaces, where the importance of the finished jewel can extend beyond the size of any single gemstone.
What Defines an Important Ruby Necklace
The necklaces in this ranking approach ruby in markedly different ways. Some build their design around groups of important stones, while others use ruby beads or smaller accents as part of a broader composition. Signed designs and the history of individual jewels add further context, showing why ruby necklaces cannot be compared by carat weight alone.
What connects these pieces is the way ruby contributes to the identity of the finished jewel. From Mauboussin’s Art Deco geometry to Boucheron’s 19th-century naturalism and Van Cleef & Arpels’ detachable design, each necklace uses the gemstone differently. Their results reflect not only the rubies themselves, but how effectively they have been incorporated into significant jewelry.
Frequently Asked Questions About Ruby Necklaces
What should collectors look for in an important ruby necklace?
Start with the rubies themselves, including color, origin, treatment status and how consistently multiple stones work together. The maker, period, construction and documented history of the finished jewel can become equally important in signed or historic necklaces.
Why are matched rubies important in a necklace?
A necklace may require numerous rubies to work together across a much larger composition than a ring or pendant. Consistency of color and overall appearance can become increasingly difficult to achieve when substantial or high-quality stones are used throughout the design.
Are ruby bead necklaces evaluated differently from faceted ruby necklaces?
Yes. Ruby beads introduce different considerations around color, shape, surface and consistency across the group. In an important signed jewel, their role within the design may also matter more than evaluating each bead as an isolated gemstone.
How much does a signed jewelry house matter for a ruby necklace?
A signature can add significance when the jewel represents the house’s design language, period or craftsmanship. Documentation supporting the attribution is also important, especially for historic pieces whose authorship may have been established through archival research.
Why are transformable ruby necklaces significant?
Detachable pendants, brooch elements or adjustable constructions allow one jewel to take several forms. In important period jewelry, that versatility can also reveal how the designer approached proportion and wearability rather than functioning as a decorative feature alone.
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