VIRAL: Imelda's multi-million dollar Bulgari jewelry bill
MANILA, Philippines — New York Magazine did not label Imelda Marcos "First Lady of Extravagance" for nothing.
In the heat of the controversial race between vice presidential candidates Leni Robredo and Bongbong Marcos, an image of an invoice of the flamboyant lady's jewelry bill went viral on the Internet.
The invoice contains her purchase at the Bulgari boutique in New York, dated July 20, 1978, showing a total of $1.431 million (P545 million today) purchase.
According to Getty Images, which released the official photo taken by Alex Bowie, the bill was among the documents found at the back of Malacañan Palace, Manila, on the night the Marcos family fled into exile in Hawaii on Feb. 25, 1986.
Did you know that in the 1978, Imelda had a shopping spree in BVLGARI in New York which cost her 1.4 million dollars? #NeverAgain
— Juliet Capulet (@curiousambivert) May 12, 2016
So the viral BVLGARI receipt of Imelda Marcos? Yeah, I double checked it and it looks legit. I also looked up the photographer and his work…
— Doki :) (@andokito) May 11, 2016
The widow's shopping sprees were unbelievable as she traveled the world buying every item she wanted to have, including shoes, art pieces and even buildings. Did you know she once spent $10.3 million to renovate structures around an entire town in the Philippines?
According to an article on NY Mag.com, Imelda’s most notorious shopping spree occurred during a 1983 trip to New York, Rome and Copenhagen where she spent $7 million in 90 days, including $2,000-worth chewing gum.
The Marcoses once reigned supreme in the Philippines, with the late former President Ferdinand Marcos throwing balls for dignitaries, along with his First Lady clad in stunning dresses and ostentatious jewelry. She had left her collection of more than a thousand pair of shoes behind when she fled the country in 1986.
After coming back from exile, her assets are still being questioned. — Alixandra Caole Vila
