Through June 3, the world’s most unique butterfly is on display at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County.

Composed of 240 colored diamonds weighing a total of 167 cts., the Aurora Butterfly of Peace represents the life’s work of its owner and curator, Alan Bronstein, a New York City colored diamond expert who spent 12 years assembling the diamonds. The range of colors and precise placement of the stones reflect the intricacy and design of a butterfly.

The Aurora Butterfly of Peace (photo courtesy of Alan Bronstein)

Bronstein carefully selected each stone and with his mentor, Harry Rodman, assembled them into the figure of the butterfly. The butterfly contains diamonds sourced from countries all over the world including Australia, South Africa, Brazil, and Russia.

The original butterfly was composed of 60 diamonds. Over time, Bronstein and Rodman added more diamonds to create a fuller, brighter piece. The butterfly made its debut at the Natural History Museum on Dec. 4.

The Aurora Butterfly of Peace under fluorescence (photo courtesy of Alan Bronstein)

“When we received the Butterfly and I opened the box containing the diamonds, my heart pumped a few stronger, faster beats!” wrote Eloïse Gaillou, the museum’s associate curator, in a blog post about the Aurora Butterfly of Peace. “Yes, what an art-piece! Honestly, no photo can do it justice. You know how great a single diamond looks like. Now, imagine 240 of them, all of different colors. AND arranged in a butterfly shape. It is just extraordinary!”

JCK