A Diamond Rose for the Duchess of Edinburgh in Rome

The Duchess of Edinburgh arrived at Italy’s parliament building in Rome for a state funeral service for former President Giorgio Napolitano on Tuesday, representing her brother-in-law, King Charles III.

Sophie wore headphones to listen to a translation of the Italian speeches during the service, which was Italy’s first secular state funeral for a former head of state. Napolitano, who died on September 22 at the age of 98, served as the President of Italy from 2006 to 2015.

For the funeral service, the Duchess wore black with small pieces of diamond jewelry—in line with expectations for mourning attire, which usually calls for “white” jewelry set with diamonds or pearls.

With her double scroll earrings from Collins & Sons, Sophie wore a petite diamond rose brooch.

The brooch has been in Sophie’s jewelry box since at least the spring of 2019. That June, she and her husband, Prince Edward, celebrated their twentieth wedding anniversary. They posed for official portraits to mark the occasion while attending the first day of Royal Ascot.

With her floral dress, Sophie wore the small diamond rose brooch, positioning it just above her name badge.

She also wore the brooch again at the races on the following day, which was the couple’s actual wedding anniversary. The double appearance on the brooch surrounding such an important milestone has led many to speculate that the jewel may have been a special anniversary gift.

Here’s a closer look at the modern rose brooch, which features wavy, pavé-set diamond petals.

This close-up of the piece shows that there are delicate knife-edge elements connecting the petals.

As you might expect, Sophie has often worn the brooch for springtime events, including garden parties. She pinned the jewel on a blue dress for this 2022 garden party at Buckingham Palace.

She wore the brooch again for another garden party, this time at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh, just a few weeks later.

She also wore the brooch with a pink dress on Garter Day in June 2022.

And the diamond brooch managed to stand out on Sophie’s ivory ensemble on Commonwealth Day at Westminster Abbey in March 2020.

Sophie has also worn the brooch for events related to the military, including the biennial Rifles Awards Dinner at the Guildhall in November 2021. On that occasion, she pinned the rose beside the cap badge of the Rifles. (She’s the Royal Colonel of the 5th Battalion.)

She also wore the diamond rose in December 2019, when she stepped in for the late Queen as the reviewing officer at the Sovereign’s Parade at Sandhurst.

We’ve seen Sophie wear the rose brooch for a previous somber occasion before as well. She chose the jewel for the memorial service for her father-in-law, the late Prince Philip, at Westminster Abbey in March 2022.