Archives for 2017

More Diamonds for Camilla in Malaysia

11.06.2017 by The Court Jeweller // Leave a Comment

Chris Jackson – Pool/Getty Images

As their royal tour of Asia continued this weekend, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall attended a dinner at the Majestic Hotel in Kuala Lumpur on Friday celebrating sixty years of diplomatic ties between the United Kingdom and Malaysia.

Chris Jackson – Pool/Getty Images

Camilla wore a grand pair of diamond-encrusted earrings for the gala dinner. We previously saw her wear these at the state banquet for the Spanish king and queen in July, when she paired them with the Greville Tiara.

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Here’s a view of Camilla wearing the diamonds at that state banquet, held at Buckingham Palace.

Chris Jackson – Pool/Getty Images

Here’s a slightly better close-up view of the earrings.

Chris Jackson – Pool/Getty Images

Camilla also wore a pair of glittering diamond bracelets for the gala. Closest to her wrist was a diamond tennis bracelet; above that she wore a more elaborate diamond bracelet. I’m not sure whether this bracelet forms a suite with the earrings, but, as you can see in that photograph above, she also wore this piece at the Spanish state banquet.

Chris Jackson – Pool/Getty Images

Here’s one more view of both bracelets.

Chris Jackson – Pool/Getty Images

And here’s a full view of Camilla’s entire ensemble for the reception.

Jewels in Motion: “The Ageless Diamond”

11.05.2017 by The Court Jeweller // Leave a Comment

In 1959, Christie’s in London held a magnificent exhibition, “The Ageless Diamond,” featuring numerous pieces with royal and noble provenance. Today, I’ve got some incredibly sparkly footage from the exhibition for you to marvel at. Enjoy!

The Nepal Diamond from Harry Winston, a 79.41-carat pear-shaped diamond, was displayed as a pendant on a diamond necklace

The Northumberland Strawberry Leaf Tiara, made with diamonds presented to the family by King George IV, was on display just a few years before it was stolen during the Greek state visit in 1963

This sparkling diamond tiara belonged to the Marquess and Marchioness of Angelsey

Press materials from the exhibition state that this diamond ring belonged to Madame du Barry, the famous mistress of King Louis XV

The exhibition notes identify this tiara as belonging to the ill-fated Marie Antoinette, but that connection is pretty tenuous, if not downright disingenuous. The tiara was displayed alongside the Sutherland Diamond Necklace, which was made with diamonds from the infamous necklace that never belonged to Marie Antoinette; it seems this tiara may also have been made from diamonds used in that necklace. The tiara reportedly belonged to the Spencer family at one point, having been given to Margaret, wife of the 6th Earl Spencer, by her father, the 1st Baron Revelstoke

The diamond-studded Garter star that belonged to King George VI was included in the exhibition

And Queen Elizabeth II also loaned several pieces of personal jewelry to the exhibition, including the magnificent Williamson Diamond Brooch

The grand Cullinan III & IV Brooch, affectionately called “Granny’s Chips” by the Queen, was displayed to the public in an exhibition setting for the very first time

Elizabeth also lent her “best diamonds,” the South African Diamonds given to her as a 21st birthday present in 1947

Queen Alexandra’s fabulous diamond kokoshnik was also loaned by the Queen. Proceeds from the entrance tickets and the exhibition catalogue went to charities favored by the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, the National Playing Fields Association and Children’s Country Holiday Fund

The Greville Ruby Necklace

11.04.2017 by The Court Jeweller // Leave a Comment

AFP/Getty Images

Seventy years ago, Princess Elizabeth of the United Kingdom received a treasure trove of wedding gifts. Among them was this unusual diamond and ruby necklace, which we’re calling the Greville Ruby Necklace.

AFP/Getty Images

The necklace, which features a distinctive v-shaped design, was made by Boucheron in 1907 for the Hon. Mrs. Ronnie Greville. Above, in a close-up from a 1987 portrait, you can see that the necklace includes diamond floral elements interspersed with rubies. It was among the numerous jewels that Mrs. Greville left to Queen Elizabeth in 1942.

In 1947, five years after the Greville bequest, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth offered the necklace to Princess Elizabeth as one of her wedding gifts. It went on display with many other pieces of jewelry given to the future queen. This GIF from the display emphasizes the size of the necklace’s diamond drop.

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Elizabeth wore the necklace throughout the first decades of her reign. Above, for a 1954 banquet in Australia, she wears the necklace with jewels that belonged to Queen Mary: the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara and the Ruby Cluster Earrings.

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For years, the necklace was hidden away in the royal vaults, but this year’s Spanish state banquet brought a surprise. The Duchess of Cambridge wore the necklace for the first time in public, pairing it with Queen Mary’s Lover’s Knot Tiara.