Did the Princess of Wales Bring Back a Sentimental Ring to Congratulate British Olympians?

This weekend, the Prince and Princess of Wales shared a video to celebrate the achievements of British athletes during the recent Summer Olympic Games–and some royal watchers think Kate may have worn a sentimental ring from her jewelry archives for the message.

While on a summer holiday with their children in Norfolk, Prince William and Princess Catherine took a moment to share a message of congratulations for the athletes of Team GB, celebrating their accomplishments during the recent Olympic Games in Paris. British athletes won 65 medals during this year’s Olympics, including gold medals in swimming, cycling, rowing, and equestrian events.

Kate, who most recently appeared in public during the Wimbledon finals in July, wore a navy and white Breton stripe top during the video, accessorized with a thin gold necklace. Eagle-eyed royal watchers also noted that, instead of her usual diamond and sapphire engagement ring, she wore a different ring with her wedding and eternity bands on her left hand.

The ring worn by Kate in the video features alternating darker and lighter gemstones. Some have guessed that it’s the garnet and seed pearl ring that she has been wearing for nearly two decades, dating back to her days as a student at St. Andrews. The gold ring in question is a style that was popular during the later decades of the Victorian era. Above, Kate wears the ring on her right hand in 2013.

And here, she wears the ring on her left hand during a party celebrating the latest publication by the historian Simon Sebag Montefiore in London in May 2005. Many have speculated–but I don’t think it’s ever been confirmed–that the ring was an early gift from Prince William. The stones set in the ring, garnets and pearls, are indeed the birthstones for January and June, which are Kate and William’s birth months.

Kate has continued to wear the ring on occasion over the years. In 2013, when she was expecting Prince George, she wore the ring on her right hand for a handful of public engagements, including a visit to Hope House in London.

Here’s a closer look at the ring from that visit in February 2013.

And here’s another look at the ring worn by Kate in this month’s video message. I’m not sure I’m entirely convinced that the two rings are one and the same. Both do have alternating dark/light gemstones, but given the (admittedly grainy) view we have from the video, the ring that Kate is wearing looks slimmer to me.

Could it be another ring? It’s possible that the darker gemstones aren’t necessarily garnets, and possible that they’re not the same stone at all. Kate has children who were born in July (ruby), May (emerald), and April (diamond), and part of me wonders whether some of those stones could be set in this ring. What do the rest of you think?