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Princess Ingeborg’s Pearl Fleur-de-Lis Brooch
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It’s a new month, which means it’s time to debut our new Magpie of the Month: Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg! We’ll be looking at several pieces of jewelry from her collection this month, including a few major heirlooms. Today’s jewel, Princess Ingeborg’s Pearl Fleur-de-Lis Brooch, is definitely a piece with a major family legacy.
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The diamond fleur-de-lis brooch is a very common design in royal jewelry, as so many royal houses use the fleur-de-lis as part of their symbolism. This brooch, however, is a bit of a twist on the classic, with a large pearl serving as the top part of the floral design.
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The brooch can be traced back to Princess Ingeborg of Denmark, who married Prince Carl of Sweden and started a large family of children who married extremely well. One of their daughters was Princess Astrid, who married King Leopold III of Belgium; their daughter was Princess Josephine-Charlotte, who married Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg. (They’re the parents of the reigning grand duke, Henri.) The ladies over at Luxarazzi note that the brooch was given to Josephine-Charlotte, but they’re not sure whether she received/inherited it from Ingeborg or Astrid. Now, the brooch is worn by Josephine-Charlotte’s daughter-in-law, Grand Duchess Maria Teresa.
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Because the brooch is a lovely, sparkly piece, it’s especially suitable for evening (or important daytime) occasions. Maria Teresa often uses it to secure the sashes of various orders. The brooch was a natural choice for a gala dinner celebrating the 70th birthday of King Harald V of Norway in February 2007; Harald’s mother, Crown Princess Martha, was also one of Princess Ingeborg’s daughters.
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Maria Teresa also wore the brooch on her order sash in June 2010, at the glittering royal wedding of Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden in Stockholm. Of course, on that occasion, you’d be forgiven for not noticing it, as the massive Empire Tiara certainly hogged the jewelry spotlight a bit!
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The brooch was also a starring accessory in London in April 2011, when Maria Teresa wore it pinned to the waist of her gown at the pre-wedding dinner for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. On this occasion, the brooch was the largest piece of jewelry worn; it was paired only with the pearl drop earrings that Maria Teresa usually coordinates with it.
Princess Benedikte’s Amethysts
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One of the prettiest, most wearable sets of royal amethysts belongs to a very bejeweled Danish princess. Here’s the history behind Princess Benedikte’s gorgeous amethyst demi-parure.
Image licensed to The Court Jeweller; DO NOT REPRODUCE. |
The set, which includes a necklace, a bracelet, a pair of earrings, and a brooch with a detachable pendant, originally belonged to Benedikte’s mother, Queen Ingrid of Denmark. In his book on Denmark’s royal jewels, Bjarne Steen Jensen speculates that the set was made in the late nineteenth-century, but it was only acquired by Ingrid in the 1970s.
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Here’s a closer view of the necklace. Although Jensen states that the stones in the suite are cabochons, this view shows that they are indeed faceted. Small diamond-set spacer elements sit between each gorgeous purple amethyst. The gold setting helps bring out the violet color of the gems.
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And here’s a good view of one of the earrings, which have diamonds set on the stud portion of the pair.
During Queen Ingrid’s lifetime, Benedikte often borrowed the amethysts from her mother. After Ingrid’s death in 2000, she inherited the jewels. Two years later, she wore the amethysts with the Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg Fringe Tiara at the Nobel Prize banquet in Stockholm; on this occasion, she added the brooch pendant to the necklace.
Image licensed to The Court Jeweller; DO NOT REPRODUCE. |
Benedikte also wore the necklace and the tiara with a deep purple gown during the celebrations for Queen Margrethe II’s Ruby Jubilee in January 2012. On this occasion, she chose to wear her mother’s diamond fan earrings with the necklace instead of the matching amethyst earrings.
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