One of the most memorable jewels in cinematic history, the Heart of the Ocean necklace had a starring role in the beloved 1997 film Titanic and has maintained an enduring impact ever since it was first draped on Kate Winslet’s neck. 

Since the golden age of Hollywood, iconic film jewels have stolen the spotlight, captured our hearts, and proved themselves stars worthy of an Oscar. But this fictional blue diamond has found itself to be a pertinent film reference to this day. Here, learn all about the real, natural blue diamonds that inspired its tale, and the lasting impact the Heart of the Ocean has had on pop culture. 

James Cameron’s 1997 epic tells the tale of a tragic love story set aboard the RMS Titanic. The luxurious British passenger liner famously sank in the North Atlantic in April 1912 after colliding with an iceberg on its maiden voyage.

Kate Winslet stars as the young debutante Rose DeWitt Bukater, who is engaged to the son of a Pittsburgh steel tycoon, Cal Hockley (Billy Zane), when she falls in love with the penniless artist Jack Dawson, played by Leonardo DiCaprio. 

In modern times, we follow the journey of treasure hunter Brock Lovet (Bill Paxton) and his research team while they explore the wreck of the RMS Titanic, looking for any signs of the Heart of the Ocean necklace. In the opening scenes of the film, the team lifts a safe out of the ship’s wreckage on the ocean floor, only to find just a sketch of the coveted jewel, rather than the diamond itself. 

When an elderly Rose DeWitt Bukater (Gloria Stuart) contacts the team to provide a first-person assist, she identifies herself as the woman wearing the Heart of the Ocean. 

Once her relationship with Jack blossoms, Rose decides to wear the necklace (wearing only the necklace) when he sketches her portrait, “like one of his French girls.” He asks if the blue stone is a sapphire when Rose explains that it’s “a diamond. A very rare diamond.” 

The extraordinary gem continues to drive the plot when Rose includes a note with the necklace and the nude sketch in the vault for Cal to find. “Darling, now you can keep us both locked in your safe.” Then, Cal’s valet, Lovejoy, slips it in Jack’s pocket to frame him for theft.

When Rose goes down with the ship wearing the jacket holding the Heart of the Ocean, we learn she’s had possession of the jewel for 84 years. As a 101-year-old woman, Rose climbs up the ships railing once again and dramatically decides to pluck the jewel into the Atlantic Ocean, proving she has never depended on Cal’s wealth to lead a rich life. 

But the 56-carat Coeur de la Mer diamond (Heart of the Ocean) was purely fiction in more ways than one. The blue diamond featured in the film was actually cubic zirconia. 

After Titanic wrapped filming, Asprey created a remarkable real version to be auctioned for charity, featuring a 171-carat blue Sri Lankan sapphire with 103 natural diamonds. The jewel hit the auction block in Beverly Hills at a star-studded gala in 1998, selling for $2.2 million to an anonymous bidder. All proceeds went to Southern California’s Aid for AIDS Foundation and to the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund, honoring the late royal, who died the previous summer. 

Early in her career, renowned jewelry executive Colleen Caslin worked as the Vice President of Marketing at Asprey. Caslin previously told Only Natural Diamonds, “Earlier in my career, my brainchild was the creation of a ‘Titanic necklace.’” She explained, “Originally, it was a prop made of synthetic stones for the film Titanic. When I worked for the Bond Street jeweler, we created a real version, which was auctioned for a great cause at the late Princess of Wales Gala Charity.”

She went on to explain, “It was worn at the Academy Awards by Celine Dion when she performed the song, “My Heart Will Go On.” That day, I had a grand slam victory at the ceremony, dressing the Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Supporting actress, and garnered over 4 million in editorial equivalency, putting the brand on the map.”

Gloria Stuart, who played Rose as an old woman in the film, set an Oscars jewelry record at the 1998 ceremony. As the oldest person to ever be nominated for Best Supporting Actress at 87 years old, the actress wore a 15-carat blue diamond necklace from Harry Winston, paying homage to the Heart of the Ocean necklace. Reminiscent of the iconic Hope Diamond, the piece remains one of the most expensive pieces of jewelry to take a trip down the red carpet, valued at an incredible $20 million. 

The 1997 film describes the 56-carat Coeur de la Mer blue diamond (Heart of the Ocean) as having been owned by King Louis XVI of France and even compares the fictional rare gem to the Hope.

“Louis XVI wore a fabulous stone that was called the Blue Diamond of the Crown, which disappeared in 1792,” Lovet explains in the film. “About the same time, old Louis lost everything from the neck up.” He says, “The theory goes that the Crown Diamond was chopped, too. Recut into a heart-like shape that became known as the Heart of the Ocean. Today, it would be worth more than the Hope Diamond.”

Just like the Heart of the Ocean, the Hope Diamond was owned by the French monarchy – Kings Louis XIV through XVI during its long and allegedly cursed lifetime. 

The Hope Diamond’s legacy began with the legendary French merchant Jean Baptiste Tavernier, who purchased the then 112-carat diamond from the Golconda region of India.

At the time, it was triangular and crudely cut. In 1668, Tavernier sold the diamond to King Louis XIV, who had the stone recut and set it in a necklace, naming it the “French Blue” after its rich color. By 1791, Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette attempted to flee France, turning over the diamond to the government, when it was ultimately stolen. Though Marie Antoinette’s beheading was the first of great hardships—and even deaths—that the diamond’s many owners have suffered, leading to what is now thought to be the curse of the Hope Diamond.