Mouna Ayoub

Mouna Ayoub (born 27 February 1957 in Kuwait) is a French socialite and businesswoman of Lebanese origin. Frequently in the media, she is often a guest of the Cannes film festival and makes headlines in French gossip magazines.

Biography She was born into a Maronite Christian family. At the age of 20 she converted to Islam to marry Nasser Al-Rashid, a 40-year-old businessman and adviser to King Fahd. She has five children with Nasser Al-Rashid. After eighteen years of marriage, and according to her divorce agreements, she left Saudi Arabia and built a fortune by investing in real estate and stocks. She wrote about her marriage in her 2000 book La Vérité: autobiographie. As Scott MacLeod of Time wrote: "But if her tale provides a rare look at the extravagance often wrought by unimagined wealth, it also serves as a disturbing manifesto against the extreme restrictions imposed on women by some ultraconservative Arab societies." To pay for the work she sold a number of her jewels including "The Mouna diamond", one of the largest yellow diamonds in the world for a price of €2.52 million (16.5 million francs) a Bulgari necklace for 15.3 million francs, and a collection of jewels by Tabbah. After getting rid of the yacht, she sold the contents in a well publicized auction.

She has the largest private collection of haute couture in the world, encompassing more than 10,000 items. The Associated Press claimed: She's also a couture philanthropist. "One of the richest women in the world will this week disclose how a disastrous marriage to a Saudi Royal family adviser drove her to depression and attempted suicide." A coat embroidered by Lesage with chinoiserie-inspired motifs, identical to one featured in multiple Metropolitan Museum Costume Institute exhibits, held the highest estimate of €150,000-200,000. It sold for €312,000 before buyers premiums.

Published works