On a hot summer afternoon, a private residence in the Bois de Boulogne was approached by a convoy of twenty armed men in black. But their attention was not for a head of state as the embassy heavy neighborhood would suggest. They came to deliver and protect a necklace named “Atours Mystérieux” from Van Cleef & Arpels for Achtung’s Haute Joaillerie shoot with top model Valerie Scherzinger.

“Atours Mystérieux” is the most important creation in the “Legend of Diamonds” collection from the French house. Its central piece is a 79.35 carat oval-cut DFL Type 2A diamond, the heaviest stone cut from the already historical “The Lesotho Legend” rough diamond with an initial weight of 910 carats. The perfect D color, the beautiful crystallization, and a highly sought-after Type 2A chemical composition make of the latter the fifth largest rough diamond in both, size and quality, ever mined. The necklace with central oval-diamond and Art Deco echoes also includes square-cut rubies.

As it commonly occurs with these objets du désir, the “Atours Mystérieux” had been sold right after being shown to clients. It was thanks to Nicolas Bos, President & CEO of Van Cleef & Arpels, that the mysterious buyer agreed to let magazines shoot this wonder for at least one week. “Legend of Diamonds is the fruit of over four years of reflection, creation and intense emotions inspired by the beauty of stones and virtuoso savoir-faire. The resulting collection writes a new page in the history of Van Cleef & Arpels,” says Bos.