The Christmas tree originated in 7th century Germany. A monk named Saint Boniface used the triangular shape of the fir tree to illustrate the Holy Trinity in his teachings. Since then, and most prominently in 16th-century Germany, families began bringing fir, pine, and fir trees into their homes and decorating them with nuts, candles, fruit, and paper flowers.
Over the years, Christmas tree ideas have not only gained huge popularity, but have also evolved into many different variations with only one thing in common, the original shape of the triangle.
Now Christmas trees can be seen everywhere during the Christmas season. So much so that having the most expensive tree has become something of a competition for some of the richest people in the world. Decorated trees are used to show how incredibly wealthy their owners are. So how valuable can a tree get?
10. Vermont Pre-Lit Artificial Trees:
Value –> $850 USD
Special features of this lighted Christmas tree include hinged branch construction and a special memory wire. The Vermont Fir Tree’s special features make it easier to set up than previous skinny artificial Christmas trees. This tree is 8.5 feet of multi-colored holiday celebration featuring the latest in artificial tree technology. I wonder what they will come up with next.
9. Pre-Lit Frasier Fir Artificial Christmas Tree:
Value –> $1,000 USD
This pre-lit artificial tree is adorned with 1,350 mini colored lights. This artificial fir tree features the ability to remove individual lights from their sockets without affecting any of the other lights on the tree. At 10 feet tall, it towers over most other artificial trees for sale.
8. Sofitel London St. James – Cognac Decorated Black Tree:
Value –> $55,000 USD
Just another run-of-the-mill metal frame skinny tree until you look a little closer. You will notice 200 miniature-sized, handcrafted 24-karat gold bottles containing Louis XIII, Grand-Champagne Cognac. No one knows why they would openly leave alcohol in a hotel lobby. The tree is 16.5 feet tall, so if you were to drink the champagne cognac, for safety reasons, I would suggest starting at the top and working your way down.
7. Steve Quick Jewelers – Gold Tabletop Trees:
Value –> $500,000 USD
As a fundraising project to benefit the American Cancer Society, this decorated tree was created by Steve Quick. The Chicago jeweler casts small trees out of 18-karat solid gold. Added a couple of features to increase the value of a larger tabletop tree, round diamond trims and a detachable platinum star trim. The star is detachable so it can be worn as a pendant. Just when you thought a solid 5lb piece of gold couldn’t look any better, they capped it off with 4.52 carats of bling, and that’s just the one diamond in the platinum star!
6. Soo Kee Jewelry – Diamond Tree:
Value –> $1 million dollars
Displayed in a shopping mall in Singapore called Bugis Junction, a 7,000-pound, 20-foot silver Christmas tree made everyone feel very poor as they searched for slightly more affordable gifts for their loved ones. A shimmering silver glitter of 21,798 diamonds and more than 3,000 crystals graced this fabulous holiday extravaganza. Would they really notice if one or two disappeared?
5. Washington DC – Capitol Christmas Tree:
Value –> $1 Million + USD
The tradition of placing a tall fir tree on the west front of the Capitol in Washington, DC began in 1964. Each year, the outside tree is cut down, transported, and replanted. Rumor has it that the cost of such an operation is well in excess of $1 million, making this outdoor Christmas decoration one of the most expensive in the world.
4. Ginza Tanaka Jewelry – Tabletop Tree:
Value –> $1.6 million dollars
The Ginza Tanaka jewelry store in Shinsaibashi, Osaka, Japan displayed this beautiful slender tree that was decorated with more than 240 priceless gems. It is a small 24-karat gold tree adorned with an assortment of diamonds and pearls weighing a total of 46 pounds. It stands as the fourth most expensive decorated Christmas tree in the world.
3. Takashimaya Department Store – Preserved Rose Mini Christmas Tree:
Value –> $1.8 million dollars
The definitive proof that size does not matter. Well, when you’re talking about fake Christmas trees for sale, that is. The 16-inch tabletop Christmas trees are made of preserved flowers and decorated with 400 diamonds. I wonder if the department store ever charged the $1.8 million price tag, yet they threw in the teddy bear to sweeten the deal.
2. Hong Kong Swarovski Crystal LED Pre-Lit Christmas Tree: Save
Value –>???
Standing a staggering 90 feet tall, Swarovski’s 40,000 crystals are stacked in a spectacular Christmas tribute as part of Hong Kong’s annual “winter festival.” While this outdoor LED Christmas tree is quite impressive during the day, just wait until the sun goes down. Unfortunately, the cost of said tree is unknown to us at this time, so the question “where does it rank on this list?” can be answered with another question “Does your Christmas tree light its lights to the beat and shoot fireworks from the top?” I don’t believe it.
1. The Emirates Palace Hotel – Decorated Christmas Tree:
Value –> $11.4 million dollars
The seven-star hotel in Dabi displayed a 40-foot Christmas pine covered in diamonds, pearls, emeralds and the like worth $11 million. This tree was on loan from a gallery in Abu Dhabi.
If you were thinking of staying at The Emirates Palace Hotel, you can expect to pay around $1 million every week. Expensive? Maybe, but your room comes with a butler, Maybach luxury car and driver, and a private jet in case you need to run to the grocery store in Edmonton, Canada to pick up a few things before dinner.