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Sparkling Royal Jewels From Around the World

This Week in Royal Jewels: October 10-16

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October 10-16, 2014
A state visit, a meeting between two monarchs, and a national celebration bring us plenty of sparkle this week. Enjoy!

10. With her work schedule back in full swing, Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh visited one of her palaces, the Tower of London, to tour the crypt and the Tower Poppies exhibit on Thursday. She wore a piece of heirloom jewelry for the day: a cabochon emerald and diamond brooch that was once part of a stomacher that belonged to the Duchess of Teck. Queen Mary had the brooch created in 1897; it’s usually worn with a cabochon emerald drop, also taken from the Teck stomacher.

9.  Queen Mathilde of the Belgians is really pushing the envelope where “large earrings” are concerned. This is the floral pair that she wore to a concert at the palace in Brussels on Wednesday!

8.  For a visit to the Barbara Sinatra Children’s Center on Saturday, Princess Charlene went with slightly smaller earrings: a pair of diamond stud earrings by Cartier.

7.  On Sunday, the Spanish royals attended a military parade to mark the country’s national day. Queen Letizia wore a pair of colorful drop earrings — possibly with cabochon gemstones? — that coordinated with her outfit.

6. Turquoise was the Duchess of Cornwall’s gemstone of choice for a day of engagements in Kent on Wednesday. With her usual diamond and pearl earrings, she wore a pair of turquoise, diamond, and gold bird brooches and a turquoise bracelet.

5. On Tuesday, Queen Elizabeth II wore one of her grandest brooches — the Cullinan V — to award the insignia of a Dame Grand Cross of the Order of St. Michael and St. George to the new Governor General of the Bahamas, Dame Marguerite Pindling. (More on the various mountings of the Cullinan stones here.)

4. On Wednesday, King Felipe and Queen Letizia of Spain paid an official visit to the Netherlands. Letizia’s theme of the day was red: red suit, red lips, and a lovely pair of ruby and diamond earrings.

3. Queen Maxima went with an even more dramatic look for the Spanish visit. Her diamond earrings are the studs from Queen Wilhelmina’s diamond pendant earrings, created in 1889. Her necklace is a supplemental royal security measure.

2. The Norwegian royals welcomed the President of India for a state visit on Monday. Crown Princess Mette-Marit’s jewelry at the welcome ceremony was limited to a large pair of diamond earrings, but at the state banquet that evening, she donned her diamond daisy bandeau, a pair of earrings with green stones (possibly small emeralds?), a small ruby brooch, King Harald’s family order, and the insignia of the Order of St. Olav. (Also props to Princess Astrid, who wore her diamond and ruby aigrette to the banquet! I just love her.)

1. Queen Sonja of Norway gets my top spot of the week — not only for her pearl-and-gold jewelry at the welcome ceremony on Monday but also for her jewels at the banquet that evening: the Norwegian emerald parure, plus a pearl bracelet with a diamond and emerald clasp, a gold bangle, King Harald’s family order, and the insignia of the Order of St. Olav.

Jewel History: Will Sell Queen’s Jewels (1907)

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Marie Henriette of Austria, Queen of Belgium, ca. 1875

“Will Sell Queen’s Jewels”
(originally appeared in the New York Times on 8 Oct and 13 Oct 1907)
BRUSSELS, OCT 7 — An auctioneer has been commissioned to sell the linens, jewels, souvenirs, etc. belonging to the late Queen of Belgium [1], the proceeds devoted to paying the debts of her daughter, Princess Louise, who was divorced last year by Prince Philipp of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha [2].

Princess Louise and Prince Philipp, ca. 1875

Among the objects is a diadem presented to the Queen by the people of Belgium on the occasion of her silver wedding anniversary [3]. The diadem cost $30,000. 


Portrait of Marie Henriette of Austria, Queen of Belgium

BRUSSELS, OCT 12 — The municipality of Brussels has decided not to purchase the diadem of the late Queen of Belgium, deeming it not sufficiently valuable as a work of art to render its retention in the country desirable.

Princess Louise, ca. 1890

This diadem was presented to the Queen by the people of Belgium on the occasion of her silver wedding anniversary. It cost $30,000. Together with various other jewels, souvenirs, etc. belonging to the late Queen, it has been placed on sale, the proceeds to be devoted to paying the debts of Princess Louise, one of the Queen’s daughters [4].

NOTES
1. Marie Henriette of Austria (1836-1902) was the queen consort of King Leopold II of Belgium. The couple married in 1853 and ascended to the Belgian throne in 1865; however, the marriage was unhappy, and Marie Henriette moved out of the palace to live at a retreat in Spa for the last seven years of her life.
2. Princess Louise of Belgium (1858-1924) was the eldest of four children of King Leopold II and Queen Marie Henriette. She married her second cousin, Prince Philipp of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, in 1875. The couple had two children, but in 1897, Louise left Philipp for Count Geza Mattachich. The story is wild: Philipp and Mattachich fought a duel (!); Mattachich forged the signature of Louise’s sister, Princess Stéphanie, on promissory notes for millions of dollars’ worth of jewels and was subsequently imprisoned; and Louise was sent to an asylum. Philipp and Louise were officially divorced in 1906, and this sale was coordinated to pay off some of Louise’s tremendous debts.
3. The tiara, which included pink diamonds, was reportedly made to resemble a set of ostrich feathers. Marie Henriette received it as a silver wedding anniversary gift in 1878. Although the public protested, the jewels were sold. Read more at Ursula’s site.
4. One of Louise’s jewels is still worn by a royal woman today. The sapphire tiara worn by Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom was originally a necklace from Louise’s collection. The Queen bought the necklace in the 1960s and had it set on a tiara frame.