A $20,000 diamond that Prime Minister Narendra Modi gifted to First Lady Jill Biden during his US visit in 2023 was the most expensive present that President Joe Biden or any family member received from foreign leaders that year, official documents show.

The 7.5-carat diamond from Modi easily outstripped the next costliest gift — a brooch valued at $14,063 that Jill Biden received from the Ukrainian ambassador to the US — according to an annual accounting published by the state department on Thursday.

Gifts and their prices have tended to grab the spotlight during meetings between Modi and US Presidents. An expensive-looking suit monogrammed with his own name that the Prime Minister wore while being pictured with Barack Obama in Delhi in 2015 had sparked questions of propriety after a businessman claimed to have gifted it to Modi.

The suit entered the Guinness World Records as “the most expensive suit sold at auction” when, reports said, it was bought for ₹4.31 crore by a Surat-based diamond trader later that year.

As for the diamond that Modi gifted Jill Biden — which would cost ₹17 lakh by today’s exchange rates — US federal law requires executive branch officials to declare gifts they receive from foreign leaders and counterparts that have an estimated value of more
than $480.

The more expensive gifts are typically — but not always — transferred to the National Archives or put on official displays.

The $20,000 diamond was retained for official use in the White House East Wing, according to a state department document, while the other gifts to the President and the First Lady were sent to the archives.

Vanessa Valdivia, a spokesperson for Jill Biden, said the diamond would be turned over to the archives after the Bidens leave office. She did not say what it was being used for.

Recipients also have the option to purchase the gift from the US government at its market value, although that is rare, particularly with high-end items.

The third costliest gift to the Bidens was a bracelet, brooch and photograph album worth $4,510 from the President and First Lady of Egypt.

The US President himself received several expensive presents, including a commemorative photo album valued at $7,100 from South Korea’s recently impeached President Suk Yeol Yoon, a $3,495 statue of Mongolian warriors from the Mongolian Prime Minister, a $3,300 silver bowl from the Sultan of Brunei, a $3,160 sterling silver tray from the President of Israel, and a collage worth $2,400 from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

According to the state department’s office of protocol, which compiles the list, several CIA employees reported receiving lavish gifts of watches, perfume and jewellery, nearly all of which were destroyed. The destroyed gifts were worth more than $132,000 combined.

CIA director William Burns received a $18,000 astrograph — a telescope and astrological camera — from a foreign source whose identity is classified. That is being transferred to the General Services Administration.

But Burns reported receiving and destroying an $11,000 Omega watch, while numerous others did the same with luxury timepieces.

The destroyed gifts included an Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra watch, a ladies’ Omega Constellation watch, a diamond necklace, an earring bracelet, and a ring that were valued together at $65,100.

A $30,000 women’s jewellery set from the Libyan jeweller Al Grew — consisting of a necklace, bracelet, ring and earrings — received by another CIA employee too was destroyed.