- A sculpture on Jeff Bezos' new $500 million megayacht has tongues wagging: Is it his girlfriend?
- Bezos and his girlfriend, Lauren Sanchez, were recently spotted on the yacht for the first time.
A sculpture on Jeff Bezos' new megayacht has people wondering whether it's his girlfriend, Lauren Sanchez.
The figurehead on the prow of the 417-foot watercraft shows a woman with long hair in a flowing dress, as seen in photos first published by the Daily Mail. She appears to be wearing a necklace that may feature the symbol for koru, which is the name of the ship. Koru means "loop" or "coil" in the Māori language and often signifies new beginnings.
Bezos and Sanchez, who went public with their relationship in 2019, were first spotted on the new $500 million superyacht earlier this week off the coast of Spain.
The vessel, believed to be the largest sailing yacht in the world, had a rocky road to completion. It caused an uproar when its Dutch shipmaker, Oceanco, requested that a historic bridge in Rotterdam in the Netherlands be dismantled for the yacht to pass because its masts were too tall to pass through underneath.
The 100-year-old Koningshaven Bridge, nicknamed "De Hef" by locals, had been renovated in 2017; after that, the city had vowed not to take it apart again, according to Dutch broadcaster Rijnmond.
Residents grew outraged and even threatened to egg the yacht if the bridge was dismantled, prompting Oceanco to withdraw its request and quietly tow away the yacht to another shipyard without its masts, which were installed later to avoid the clearance issue.
Koru was seen doing sea trials, which are comprised of several tests and usually mark one of the last phases of construction, in February. The yacht made its maiden voyage in April when it left Oceanco's facilities to travel to Gibraltar on the way to Bezos.
Check out the photos of the yacht's figurehead on the Daily Mail.