Giant bangle
An Indian jewellery manufacturer is claiming to have created the world's largest gold bangle.
Designed by Tata Gold Plus in Tamil Nadu, and measuring 1.8 metres in diameter, the giant bangle is fashioned from 24 kilograms of gold and forms a width of 15 centimetres.
According to reports, it took 30 workmen approximately three weeks to design and create the massive piece of jewellery.
The project was motivated by "national pride", according to a statement from the manufacturer, and it has certainly attracted attention - making it into the Limca (Indian) Book of Records.
"I'm very proud to say that it's going to have an entry in the 2009 edition which is our special edition, for being the world's largest gold bangle," said Arti Muthanna Singh, senior editor. "We've never had a record like this before."
The giant adornment has reportedly attracted crowds of onlookers to the jeweller's showroom - all keen to get a glimpse of the mammoth bangle.
Olympians go for jade
Athletes at the recent Beijing Olympics won medals made not only from gold, silver and bronze but also from jade.
For the first time in Olympic history, each of the 3,000 medals awarded to athletes bore bands of jade - a symbol of honour and virtue in Chinese culture.
The gold medals incorporated white jade, the silvers were set with light green jade and the bronze boasted dark green jade.
Hip-hop bling goes to auction
A New York-based auction house has conducted an auction devoted to hip-hop jewellery
Phillips de Pury and Co. held the Hip Hop's Crown Jewels auction on October 1, describing the event as "unprecedented for a major auction house".
The sale involved 50 pieces of blinged-out jewellery that Philips called "complex cultural artifacts embedded with style, and indelibly marked with narratives of class, religion, materialism, and the American Dream".
The items once belonged to celebrities including LL Cool J, Tupac Shakur and Jay-Z, and were categorised into the Golden Era of hip-hop (1980 to early 1990s), the mid-1990s battle between East and West Coast sounds, and hip-hop's current mainstream age.
Ancient gold ring discovered
A treasure-hunter in the UK has used a metal detector to uncover a medieval gold ring, set with what is thought to be a black diamond.
According to a report on Telegraph.co.uk, Hinckley resident John Stevens, 42, has not yet had his find valued, but expects it to be worth tens of thousands of pounds.
The ring is engraved with lettering that reportedly indicates it is from the early medieval period, possibly the 11th century.
Oyster yields 26 pearls
A Lebanese woman has discovered 26 pearls in one oyster shell.
While preparing the oyster to be served in her son's restaurant in the southern port of Tyre, Amal Salha, 50, shucked the oyster to reveal a cluster of pearls.
According to a report in The Age, Salha planned to submit the find to the Guinness Book of Records.
The oyster had been harvested off the Lebanese coast.
Diamond butterfly on display
The American Museum of Natural History recently unveiled the Aurora Butterfly of Peace, consisting of 240 colored diamonds in the shape of a butterfly and weighing a total of 167 carats.
According to a report in the New York Times, the collection was assembled over 12 years by Alan Bronstein and Harry Rodman and is one of three publicly-viewable coloured-diamond collections in the world - the other two include another from Aurora Gems and one owned by De Beers.
So popular is the collection that the curator has labelled it "the highest slobber factor of anything in the gem house" with "nose prints and handprints" commonly found on the glass. "In the special exhibitions, we have had to move the colored diamonds because it would cause traffic problems," said curator George Harlow.
Beyonce's behemoth bling
Singer Beyonce Knowles has stepped out wearing a $US5 million diamond engagement ring.
Pictured recently at the Fashion Rocks concert in New York City, the star showed off her 18-carat flawless diamond engagement ring, bestowed to her by fellow RnB singer and producer Jay Z.
Paspaley contests tax
Australian pearl king Nick Paspaley is embroiled in a battle with the NSW Office of State Revenue over a decade-old tax bill.
One of Australia's richest men, Paspaley is refusing to pay an estimated $1.5 million in outstanding land tax on his Sydney harbour-front mansion, claiming the luxury property is his principal place of residence and therefore exempt from land tax.
The case will return to the Supreme Court in November for the third time following a ruling last month in the NSW Court of Appeal.
With headquarters in Darwin, the Paspaley pearl company is worth an estimated $620 million.
Tennis racquet sparkle
The US Open served up its share of bling but none shone brighter than Asia Muhammad, 17, who made her professional debut with a pink tennis racquet set with diamonds.
Created by Michael E. Minden of Michael E. Minden Diamond Jewelers, Las Vegas, the sparkly racquet was pavé-set with 1 carat of VS diamonds forming the letter "A" as a gift to the emerging tennis star.
"This is the first time I've put diamonds on a piece of athletic equipment," said the creator. "We came up with a special process to affix it to the racquet and transfer the letters to a new racquet when Asia wears out the first one."
The diamond letters retail for $US1,750 (including installation).