CollectionsApr 03, 2026
Taylor Swift’s ‘Elizabeth Taylor’ Video Puts Jewelry Front and CenterIconic pieces, like the Mike Todd Diamond Tiara, appear in the superstar’s new music video for her song inspired by the actress.
AuctionsDec 01, 2020
Elvis TCB Ring Takes in More Than $400K at Auction
The buyer apparently couldn’t help falling in love with the bold, chunky piece.
Memphis, Tennessee jeweler Lowell Hays designed this 14-karat gold and diamond ring for Elvis Presley, who later gave it to one of his backup singers, J.D. Sumner. It sold for more than $400,000 at auction over the weekend.
Los Angeles—A buyer apparently couldn’t help falling in love with Elvis’ chunky and bold “Taking Care of Business” ring, setting a new world auction record for a ring once owned by the King.
The piece, auctioned as part of Kruse GWS Auctions’ sale of Hollywood and music memorabilia over the weekend, attracted 31 bids and ultimately pulled in $440,625.
That made it the highest grossing lot in the sale, and the most expensive ring once owned by Elvis Presley ever sold at auction. (The previous record belonged to a horseshoe-shaped ring that went for $204,800.)
Designed according to the singer’s specifications by jeweler Lowell Hays Jr., the 14-karat yellow gold piece features a 7.56-carat VS2 diamond center and diamond accents totaling 2.25 carats.
Just below the center stone are the diamond-set letters “T,” “C” and “B,” which stand for “Taking Care of Business,” the mantra Elvis adopted when he returned to the concert circuit in 1969.
The singer was known for giving away his jewelry.
He gifted this particular piece to friend and backup vocalist J.D. Sumner, lead singer of Sumner & The Stamps, on stage at a concert in Asheville, North Carolina in 1975.
Elvis can be heard in an audio clip from that concert telling the crowd the ring—the first of numerous “TCB” pieces—cost him $40,000, the equivalent of nearly $200,000 today.
Hays, who closed his Memphis, Tennessee jewelry store in 2005, was known as the official jeweler to the King. He also made a TCB necklace and a TLC, or “Tender Loving Care,” necklace.
GWS Auctions called this size 10 TCB ring “arguably the most significant and well-documented piece of Elvis’ jewelry on the planet,” noting that not even Graceland has “a piece of this magnitude.”
It said the ring has never been offered at auction or any kind of public sale.
Sumner, who died in 1998, kept it for years then gave it to Mike Moon, founder of the Elvis Museum in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, in the 1980s. It’s been in Moon’s collection ever since.
The piece, auctioned as part of Kruse GWS Auctions’ sale of Hollywood and music memorabilia over the weekend, attracted 31 bids and ultimately pulled in $440,625.
That made it the highest grossing lot in the sale, and the most expensive ring once owned by Elvis Presley ever sold at auction. (The previous record belonged to a horseshoe-shaped ring that went for $204,800.)
Designed according to the singer’s specifications by jeweler Lowell Hays Jr., the 14-karat yellow gold piece features a 7.56-carat VS2 diamond center and diamond accents totaling 2.25 carats.
Just below the center stone are the diamond-set letters “T,” “C” and “B,” which stand for “Taking Care of Business,” the mantra Elvis adopted when he returned to the concert circuit in 1969.
The singer was known for giving away his jewelry.
He gifted this particular piece to friend and backup vocalist J.D. Sumner, lead singer of Sumner & The Stamps, on stage at a concert in Asheville, North Carolina in 1975.
Elvis can be heard in an audio clip from that concert telling the crowd the ring—the first of numerous “TCB” pieces—cost him $40,000, the equivalent of nearly $200,000 today.
Hays, who closed his Memphis, Tennessee jewelry store in 2005, was known as the official jeweler to the King. He also made a TCB necklace and a TLC, or “Tender Loving Care,” necklace.
GWS Auctions called this size 10 TCB ring “arguably the most significant and well-documented piece of Elvis’ jewelry on the planet,” noting that not even Graceland has “a piece of this magnitude.”
It said the ring has never been offered at auction or any kind of public sale.
Sumner, who died in 1998, kept it for years then gave it to Mike Moon, founder of the Elvis Museum in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, in the 1980s. It’s been in Moon’s collection ever since.
This platinum ring set with 13 carats of diamonds was owned by actress Arlene Dahl, an MGM contract star in the 1950s. It sold for more than $9,000 at the recent “Artifacts of Hollywood & Music” auction.
Kruse GWS Auctions’ “Artifacts of Hollywood & Music” sale closed Saturday.
It featured more than 300 lots of music and movie star memorabilia, like a Louis Vuitton secretary trunk and antique typewriter Marilyn Monroe gifted her third husband, the playwright Arthur Miller, that sold for $51,200 and the late Robin Williams’ striped rainbow suspenders from “Mork & Mindy,” which sold for $2,375.
Other jewelry lots included a size 5 platinum ring owned by ’50s actress Arlene Dahl that features 13 total carats of round and baguette-cut F-G/VS1-VS2 diamonds set in a spiral shape. It sold for more than $9,000.
Muhammad Ali’s Omega watch engraved with “Ali 10/30/1974,” commemorating his victory over George Foreman at the famous “Rumble in the Jungle” event in 1974, went for more than $5,000.
A pair of Bulova watches that belonged to screen legend Greta Garbo sold for more than $1,200.
The Latest
MajorsApr 03, 2026
Saks Global Says It Will Emerge From Bankruptcy This SummerThe luxury retailer, which went Chapter 11 in January, announced Thursday that it has secured $500 million in exit financing.
Events & AwardsApr 03, 2026
JCK Luxury, NouvelleBox Partner on New Designer BallroomThe NouvelleBox ballroom will feature independent jewelry designers, including Lene Vibe, Wyld Box Jewelry, and Kiaia Limited.
Brought to you by
Protect Your Customers and Your BusinessYou deserve to know what you are selling–to protect your customers as well as your business and your reputation.
CollectionsApr 03, 2026
Buddha Mama Brings Its ‘Moon’ Locket To DallasThe one-of-a-kind locket, our Piece of the Week, opens to reveal three hidden images to keep close to your heart.
Weekly QuizApr 02, 2026
This Week’s QuizTest your jewelry news knowledge by answering these questions.
MajorsApr 02, 2026
Pandora Opens New Canadian Distribution Center Amid Tariff ConcernsThe new facility was also designed to better serve its growing customer base in Canada.
TrendsApr 02, 2026
Michelle Yeoh Fronts New Mikimoto Campaign The campaign is a tribute to the year 1893, when Kokichi Mikimoto created the world’s first cultured pearl.
Brought to you by
Is This You? Every Jeweler Has This Problem; We Have the Solution.Every jeweler faces the same challenge: helping customers protect what they love. Here’s the solution designed for today’s jewelry business.
GradingApr 02, 2026
GIA Debuts New Campus in TaiwanIt is the only GIA school to offer the GIA Graduate Gemologist program in Chinese.
MajorsApr 02, 2026
DCA Launches ‘Second Spark’ Workforce InitiativeThe initiative connects veterans and parents returning to the workforce with careers in jewelry retail.
MajorsApr 02, 2026
Hoover & Strong Names New National Sales RepresentativeThe wholesale manufacturer and precious metals refiner has appointed Michael Angelo as its new national sales representative.
MajorsApr 01, 2026
Foundrae Sues Pandora for Allegedly Copying Its Medallion DesignsFoundrae also accused the jewelry giant of copying its mood board style of marketing.
SurveysApr 01, 2026
Consumers’ Outlook Improves Again in MarchThe Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index edged up, with optimism about the present outweighing worries about the future.
IndependentsApr 01, 2026
Zachary’s Jewelers’ Constance Polamalu to Release Children’s BookThe retailer’s Zach Bear gift comes to life in “Zach Bear and the Window Necklace,” which centers on curiosity, bravery, and helping.
Events & AwardsApr 01, 2026
AGA Opens 2026 Gemological Scholarship, Research Grant ApplicationsApplications are open for the AGA Gemological Scholarship Program through May 15, and until June 2027 for the Gemological Research Grant.
ColumnistsMar 31, 2026
Q1 Clues That Reveal Where Your Jewelry Store’s Sales Are Heading These customer behavior patterns say a lot about how successful your jewelry store is going to be this year, Emmanuel Raheb writes.
CollectionsMar 31, 2026
Mejuri Adds Silver to ‘Puzzle’ CollectionMejuri’s popular collection of 18-karat yellow gold vermeil rings debuted in sterling silver alongside new “Puzzle” slider charms.
CollectionsMar 31, 2026
Buddha Mama, Ashley Longshore to Host Pop-Up in DallasThe Miami-based jewelry brand and the NYC-based artist will be in Dallas from April 9-11.
SourcingMar 31, 2026
NDC Designates April 8 as 'World Diamond Day'The initiative invites those in the industry to share stories on social media highlighting the meaning and impact of natural diamonds.
SourcingMar 31, 2026
GIA VP Jillian Wolk to Take Over at Tracr Wolk’s first day on the job as CEO of Tracr, De Beers Group’s blockchain platform, will be May 1.
EditorsMar 30, 2026
Tom Moses Looks Back on His Decades at GIA Moses, who will leave the lab in May after nearly 50 years, discusses his start in the business, gemstones that stand out, and what’s next.
TrendsMar 30, 2026
Oscar Heyman Debuts First Spring CatalogThe new catalog, which showcases 35 one-of-a-kind pieces of jewelry, is a compliment to the company’s popular holiday catalog.
SourcingMar 30, 2026
Rio Tinto Hauls Last Load from DiavikProduction has ceased at the Canadian diamond mine, which has yielded more than 150 million carats of rough diamonds in its 23-year run.
MajorsMar 30, 2026
Tanishq Opens First New England LocationThe store opening marks the 10th United States location for the India-based jewelry retailer.
MajorsMar 27, 2026
Saks Global Has Changed Its Mind About Closing These 3 StoresTwo Saks Fifth Avenue locations, one in Florida and one in California, and one Neiman Marcus store are off the chopping block.
IndependentsMar 27, 2026
Jimmy West, Longtime LJG Executive Director, Dies at 72West, who started in the art department at the Leading Jewelers Guild in 1979, is remembered for his patience, kindness, and dedication.
CollectionsMar 27, 2026
Itä’s ‘Yarí Whirl’ Ring Tells Every Side of the StoryIn the “Tesoro” version of the ring, our Piece of the Week, each side of the gold hexagonal nugget has a unique colored gemstone design.
