The Curious Case of Marilyn Monroe’s Missing “Heirloom” Engagement Ring

By Emily Chan

Marilyn Monroe was famous for her bombshell style, from the iconic white dress she wore in The Seven Year Itch in 1955 to the embellished nude gown she wore when she sang "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" to John F Kennedy in 1962 (the very same dress that Kim Kardashian modeled on the 2022 Met Gala red carpet).

It's perhaps surprising, then, that her engagement ring from baseball star Joe DiMaggio was relatively pared back compared to the glamorous looks the actor was so closely associated with. Featuring 36 baguette-cut diamonds, the platinum ring was an eternity band design—a chic yet understated style that was also sported by the likes of Audrey Hepburn and Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy back in the day.

The story doesn't end there though: while Monroe's platinum engagement ring was later sold at a Christie's auction for a staggering $772,500 (£636,000) in 1999, the actor was actually believed to be wearing a different ring at her courthouse wedding in San Francisco in 1954. According to collector Scott Fortner, founder of the Marilyn Monroe Collection, this original diamond engagement ring may have been a DiMaggio family heirloom that was used as a placeholder for the wedding day, but little is known about its origins, or indeed, where it is now.

Marilyn Monroe's platinum eternity ring from Joe DiMaggio, featuring 36 baguette-cut diamonds, sold at a Christie's auction for a staggering $772,500 (£636,000) in 1999.

It's not the only impromptu wedding ring that was given to Monroe. When she wedded Arthur Miller in New York in 1956 (sadly, her marriage to DiMaggio was short-lived), the playwright gave her a 22-carat-gold wedding ring that had belonged to his mother, Augusta, as the Cartier design that he had ordered didn't arrive in time.

Nonetheless, it's Monroe's diamond eternity band from DiMaggio that will go down in the history books. "The eternity ring, a precious metal band set with a continuous line of identical gemstones, represents eternal love, making it the perfect choice as an engagement ring," says Rachel Garrahan, British Vogue's jewelry director.