King George VI presented this brooch to his wife in 1939 in honor of their state visit to Canada that year. Made by Asprey, the diamond and platinum brooch is made in the shape of a familiar Canadian national symbol: the maple leaf. The Queen Mother owned the brooch until her death in 2002, but she lent the brooch to the Queen on at least one occasion when she was touring Canada. The Queen later extended the same gesture the Duchess of Cornwall and the Duchess of Cambridge for their Canadian royal tours.

This exquisite diamond, gold, and sapphire cluster brooch originally belonged to Empress Marie Feodorovna of Russia, sister of Queen Alexandra. In 1934, Alexandra’s daughter-in-law, Queen Mary, reportedly bought the brooch from Marie Feodorovna’s daughters. The brooch was a great favorite of the Queen Mother, and in more recent years, the Queen has begun wearing it as well.

The Queen debuted this emerald and diamond necklace at the Diplomatic Reception in December 2019. We still don’t have confirmed provenance information on the piece, but many are speculating that it may be a second major emerald necklace from the Greville Bequest. This one doesn’t appear to have been worn by the Queen Mother during her lifetime, but if it was indeed part of the Greville Bequest, the Queen inherited it in 2002.

These diamond and emerald drop earrings, also debuted by the Queen at the Diplomatic Reception in December 2019, were part of the Greville Bequest and were great favorites of the Queen Mother. She often paired them with the other major emerald necklace from the Greville Bequest, which was also inherited by the Queen in 2002.

This brooch is a particularly special part of the Queen Mother’s bequest. In 2000, the Queen gave the rock crystal brooch, which features a hand-painted rose surrounded by diamonds, to her mother as a 100th birthday present. A little over a year later, the Queen Mother willed the brooch back to her daughter. The Queen has worn it often in the years since.

Inspired by Indian motifs he viewed at the Great Exhibition, Prince Albert designed this diamond circlet for Queen Victoria in 1853. The piece was originally studded with opals, and Albert purchased a coordinating suite of opal jewelry to go with the circlet the following year. When the British lost the Hanoverian claim, the circlet had to be remade with new diamonds; in the early 20th century, the entire suite was renovated again when Queen Alexandra had the opals replaced with rubies. The set was designated by Queen Victoria as an heirloom of the crown, and it accordingly passed from Alexandra to Queen Mary to the Queen Mother. However, when George VI died, the Queen Mum retained the suite. The Queen finally inherited the tiara and the accompanying ruby jewels from her mother in 2002; since then she has worn the tiara once (paired with the Baring Ruby Necklace) and the rubies occasionally.

This elaborate diamond brooch, which is also sometimes called a “waterfall” brooch, was probably made using jewels that Queen Victoria had received from the Sultan of Turkey in 1856. The piece has been reworked occasionally over the years, and in 1901, Victoria decided to bequeath it personally to her eldest son, King Edward VII. Since then, the piece has been handed from Queen Alexandra to Queen Mary to the Queen Mother and then, in 2002, to the Queen.

Only two monarchs in British history have celebrated a Diamond Jubilee: Queen Victoria in 1897 and Queen Elizabeth II in 2012. To mark Victoria’s milestone, her Royal Household presented her with this Garrard diamond and pearl brooch. Victoria called the piece “beautiful” and designated it an heirloom of the crown. It subsequently passed to each queen consort, but the Queen Mother held on to the piece until her death in 2002. Since then, the Queen has worn the brooch for both day and evening engagements.

The Queen first wore this diamond fringe tiara in 1947 on her wedding day, but back then it was just a loan. The tiara was made in 1919 for Queen Mary as a more modern, streamlined version of Queen Adelaide’s more cumbersome diamond fringe; in 1936, she gave it to her daughter-in-law, Queen Elizabeth (the Queen Mother). She loaned it to her daughter (Queen Elizabeth II) and her granddaughter (Princess Anne) to wear at their weddings, and in 2002, she bequeathed the tiara to the Queen. Since then, the Queen has worn it occasionally for banquets and portraits. She also loaned it to her granddaughter, Princess Beatrice, for her wedding in 2020.

This diamond and platinum brooch was made for the Queen Mother by Cartier in 1938. It features a palm-leaf design, although many have noted the visual resemblance to a paisley pattern. The Queen Mum wore the brooch throughout her life, and since inheriting it in 2002, the Queen has also made it a regular part of her brooch rotation.

Lady Jardine bequeathed this classic, star-shaped diamond brooch to the Queen in 1981. Not much is known about the brooch’s provenance, but Leslie Field states that the piece is Victorian. There’s a bit of mystery surrounding its origins, but there’s no question that it has become a firm favorite of the Queen. She even selected it in 2012 for one of the events of her Diamond Jubilee weekend celebrations.

The Queen traveled to Sri Lanka for a state visit in the autumn of 1981, and during the trip she was presented with this lovely floral brooch. The piece is set with multi-colored precious and semi-precious stones; it also combines faceted stones with cabochons.

The Emir of Qatar added to the Queen’s collection of modern ruby jewels in 1985, when he presented her with a new set of jewels during a state visit. The suite includes a diamond and ruby swag necklace and a pair of coordinating earrings. The Queen has also frequently paired the jewels with her Burmese Ruby Tiara.

First worn in 1989 during a state visit from the United Arab Emirates, this modern suite of diamond and emerald jewelry includes a necklace, a bracelet, and coordinating earrings. The necklace and earrings are especially easy to identify, thanks to their elaborate tassel motifs.

This Cartier-made brooch was presented to the Queen in 1990 by the French Order of Liberation. It features a pair of coral roses studded with diamonds, and the Queen has generally worn it to events in France (or related to France) since she received it.