The most iconic engagement rings in recent history

For those that decide to tie the knot, getting engaged is one of the most special times in your life. From the declaration of love from your other half to the moment of your marriage, these months planning your future together will create many beautiful memories that are sure to last a lifetime.

While the eternal love it symbolises is far more important that the band itself, many still dream of being given the ideal engagement ring. After all, it is a beloved accessory that you will wear forever. However, with engagement rings in a variety of styles to choose between, it can be tricky for you and your partner to decide on the perfect fit.

If you are searching for inspiration, take a look at the most iconic celebrity engagement rings. While the price tags are pretty eyewatering, you can identify aspects that you love in the different designs and use this knowledge to find a band that feels like the most special engagement ring in the world.

Princess Diana’s sapphire

Selected from the options provided by the royal crown jeweller in 1981, Princess Diana’s ring instantly became one of the most coveted accessories across the globe. Her status as a fashion icon only served to boost the ring’s allure.

The ring itself is comprised of a 12-carat Ceylon sapphire in an oval cut surrounded by 14 diamonds, all set in 18-carat white gold. Arguably the most famous engagement ring in the world, it now sits on the finger of Kate Middleton – the Princess of Wales.

The Elizabeth Taylor diamond

British-American actress Elizabeth Taylor was an icon of 1950s classical Hollywood cinema. Renowned for her striking beauty, she received ten engagement rings over the course of her lifetime with the most famous now known as the Elizabeth Taylor diamond.

This 33-carat Asscher-cut diamond is a sizeable accessory that suited Taylor’s outlandish personality. The ring sold for over £7 million in 1979.

Jackie Kennedy’s emerald

Of the most iconic engagement rings in recent history, Jackie Kennedy’s is perhaps the most unique. Her fiancé, American president John F. Kennedy, commissioned a special design so that the band could include both a diamond and an emerald.

Its exquisite art deco style sees the two 2.8-carat stones sitting side by side on a band of tiny diamonds, enclosed in a floral diamond wreath. This historic engagement ring is now part of a special Kennedy collection in Boston.

Hailey Bieber’s ring

The most recent ring to really take the world by storm was Hailey Bieber’s classic oval diamond. Reportedly worth half a million dollars, the whopping rock is cut to perfection to sparkle in any light and sits on an exquisitely delicate gold band.

Oval cuts seem to have become a trend for engagement rings since then, with reality star Kourtney Kardashian following suit in 2022 with a similarly ‘simple’ oval diamond worth 1 million dollars.