This impressive pearl formed part of the collection of Valda Virginia Vaughn Scott, the daughter of an English diplomat and a member of the prestigious Alessi family. Her Alessi grandfather and great-grandfather were respectively a Major in the Royal Malta Regiment and the Malta Crown Advocate, whose ancestors in turn descended from the Maltese nobleman, the Marquis di Taflia.

This fine provenance also lends itself to the rarity of the pearl, whose size places it as the 12th largest gem-quality single pearl so far recorded, and comparable in size to the Pearl of Kuwait (weighing 257.41 grains or 64.35 carats) sold by Christie'’s London on 24 November 2004 for GBP 150,000 or $270,000.