NEW YORK— Simon de Pury hopes his love of hip-hop will get some hands in the air. On orders from her boss, New York jewelry specialist Alia Varsano spent much of this year traveling to secure consignments for Phillips de Pury and Co.’s October 1 sale of Hip Hop’s Crown Jewels—the beloved bling of some of the genre’s most famous artists. Think Notorious B.I.G.’s gold, steel and diamond Rolex and Missy Elliot’s diamond and gold “Turntable” ring. Or Lil Jon’s 73-carat diamond and gold Crunk Ain’t Dead necklace. Weighing in at nearly 12 pounds, the glittering hulk (est. $200–250,000) is the world’s largest diamond pendant. Varsano says one of her golden moments was waiting backstage in a Los Angeles amphitheater for MC Lyte, who handed over her Nefertiti necklace and ring following a concert. Bargain hunters listen up: Estimated at just several hundred dollars apiece, they could cost less than a scalped ticket to one of the rapster’s performances.

"De Pury's in Da House" originally appeared in the September 2008 issue of Art+Auction. For a complete list of articles from this issue available on ARTINFO, see Art+Auction's September 2008 Table of Contents.