Who designed the most expensive Barbie doll ever sold?

Stefano Canturi designed the most expensive Barbie doll ever sold.

The one-of-a-kind Barbie was created in 2010 by Australian jewelry designer Stefano Canturi, working with Mattel to promote the Barbie Basics collection in Australia. She wore a black evening dress and a necklace centered on a one-carat fancy vivid pink diamond surrounded by three carats of white diamonds.

Christie’s auctioned the doll in New York on October 20, 2010, for $302,500. The proceeds went to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. The record concerns an actual auction sale, not merely a doll’s estimated value or retail price.

A common mix-up is confusing this doll with the De Beers 40th Anniversary Barbie, which sold for far less. Canturi’s creation is also notable because its value came largely from its genuine fine jewelry, rather than from the age of the plastic doll itself.