Worth R500k: Five things to know about Miss SA’s uBuhle crown

From being worth R500 000 to the symbolism behind it, here are five things to know about the crown the new Miss South Africa (SA), who will be crowned on Saturday 13 August,  will be wearing during her reign.

1. THE MISS SA CROWN IS WORTH R500 000

The uBuhle crown was worth a whopping R500 000 in 2019.

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2. THE MISS CROWN IS CALLED THE UBUHLE CROWN 

According to The Sunday Times, The crown was named after the phase uBuhle bethingo lenkosazana. This means the beauty of the rainbow. 

The design of the colourful band of jewels around the base of the crown was inspired by traditional Ndebele patterns. On the other hand,the larger princess cut stones seen rising above the crown are meant to resemble shooting stars.

3. FORMER MISS UNIVERSE ZOZIBINI TUNZI WAS THE FIRST TO WEAR THE CROWN 

The uBuhle crown was first worn by beauty queen Zozibini Tunzi. Sasha-Lee Olivier then wore the crown when Zozibini was crowned Miss Universe. Miss SA 2020 Shudufhadzo Musida was the third beauty queen to wear the crown followed by Miss SA 2021 Lalela Mswane. 

So, the newly crowned Miss SA will be the fifth beauty queen to wear the uBuhle crown.

4. THE MISS SA CROWN IS AS HEAVY AS A 500ML BOTTLE 

The crown weighs 517g which is equal to a 500ml bottle.

5. THE UBHULE CONTAINS 182 CARATS BLING 

So, those actually aren’t real diamonds but the sterling silver crown is studded with 2,586 fine-cut cubic zirconia stones. The sorting of these stones took 36 hours. However, it reportedly took a total of 192 hours to manufacture.

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