Hannah Husain becomes first Pakistani to debute at Le Bal des Débutantes, wears diamond necklace worth USD 2.5 million

Hannah Husain has become the first ever Pakistani woman to debut at the coveted Le Bal des Debutantes ball in Paris, attended by eligible single ladies from around the world. The ball was organised by Ophélie Renouard to raise funds for the cardiology research unit ARCFA of Neck-Enfants Malades Hospital and for the World Central Kitchen, which provides meals to vulnerable communities around the globe. It was held at the Shangri-La Paris, the former residence of Napoleon Bonaparte’s nephew.

Hannah Husain is the great-great granddaughter of Sir Fazli Husain, a barrister from Cambridge, and an Education Minister, while her great grandfather served as Pakistan’s ambassador to Beirut, Lebanon.

Husain debuted at the ball wearing a pastel gown adorned with roses designed by Georges Hobeika and Elie Saab, and was escorted to the event by her brother Harris.

It was Hannah’s necklace that caught the attention of social media. The bauble has a history dating back all the way to the 1800s according to Christie’s, and is the estimated to be worth $1.5 to 2.5 million.

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According to royal watcher blog, the necklace was designed for Princess Maria Caroline of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, the Duchess of Aumale, later gifted to his god daughter Princess Helene of Orleans when she married the Duke of Aosta.

The necklace was worn by the Marchioness of Chomondeley, Sybil Sassoon, and later by Lady Churchill in 1953 for the Nobel Prize Ceremony.

At the 2022 debutante ball in Paris, Princess Helene d’Orelans had loaned the necklace to her namesake.