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Sparkling Royal Jewels From Around the World

The Top Ten: Royal Aquamarine Tiaras

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As March draws to a close, so does our month-long discussion of various royal jewels set with aquamarines. To wrap things up, here’s a look at my ten favorite royal aquamarine tiaras. Add your own top ten list in the comments below!

10. The Aquamarine Pineflower Tiara: Made in the 1940s by Cartier, this diamond and aquamarine tiara was originally owned by the Queen Mother. She passed the piece along to her granddaughter, Princess Anne, who had it remodeled; she now wears the new version occasionally at state events.

9. The Swedish Aquamarine Bandeau: Princess Madeleine received this petite diamond and aquamarine bandeau for her eighteenth birthday; the piece was an heirloom that had been in the family for at least one generation. Madeleine occasionally wears the bandeau à la Josephine — that is, low across the brow in a style influenced by Empress Josephine and the Empire period (and later revived in the 1920s).

8. The Luxembourg Aquamarine Bandeau: The vast Luxembourgish grand ducal jewelry vaults includes a lovely diamond and aquamarine bandeau, which features large aquamarines set between elements that look like diamond knots. Like most of the family’s bandeaux, this piece seems to have originated with Grand Duchess Josephine-Charlotte.

7. The Countess of Wessex’s Aquamarine Necklace Tiara: Sophie debuted this modern, convertible jewel in 2005; some have attributed the piece to Collins and Sons. Last year, she chose the diamond and aquamarine tiara for the royal wedding of Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia of Sweden.

6. The Spanish Wedding Gift Tiara: Queen Fabiola of Belgium’s endlessly-convertible tiara can be worn with small aquamarines set in the center of each of its diamond “leaves.” The piece was a gift from the Francos, who governed Fabiola’s native Spain at the time of her wedding to Belgium’s king.

5. The Small Brazilian Aquamarine Tiara: This diamond and aquamarine tiara, said to be made using stones gifted to Queen Elizabeth II by Brazil, was worn briefly by the Queen earlier in her reign. In recent years, she has often loaned the piece to her daughter-in-law, the Countess of Wessex.

4. The Dutch Aquamarine Tiara: Part of a married parure of aquamarine jewels amassed by Queen Juliana, the Dutch royal family’s diamond and aquamarine tiara features seven large aquamarine briolettes. The tiara, which was made by Kempen, Begeer, and Vos, has been worn by a number of Dutch royal ladies, including Queen Maxima, Princess Laurentien, Princess Beatrix, Princess Margriet, and Princess Irene.

3. The Brazilian Aquamarine Tiara: Queen Elizabeth II commissioned this tiara of diamonds and aquamarines to accompany various aquamarine pieces she’d received over time from the people and the government of Brazil. That original tiara was remodeled, turning it into the enormous diamond and aquamarine sparkler worn by the Queen today.

2. Queen Ena’s Aquamarine Tiara: This tiara of diamonds and aquamarines originally belonged to Queen Ena of Spain. Its original incarnation looked very different; it was eventually remodeled by Bulgari at the request of Ena’s daughter, Beatriz. The new tiara, which resembles the Vladimir Tiara in shape, was most recently worn in public by Ena’s great-granddaughter, Princess Sibilla of Luxembourg.

1. The Swedish Aquamarine Kokoshnik: My favorite royal aquamarine tiara is the lovely diamond and aquamarine kokoshnik that belongs to the Swedish royal family. A favorite of the late Princess Sibylla, the tiara now belongs to Princess Margaretha, who has loaned it out recently to her sister, Princess Christina, and her niece, Princess Madeleine.
Read more about royal aquamarine jewels…

The Top Ten: Royal Amethysts

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Happy Leap Day, magpies! Since we’ve got one extra day this year to marvel at February’s birthstone, I thought it was only right to present you with ten of my favorite royal amethyst pieces. Let me know how you’d rank your list in the comments below!

10. The Flora Danica Tiara

Made by Flora Danica for the exclusive use of Princess Marie of Denmark, this tiara, made of silver lilies, features a row of amethyst beads at its base.

9. The Norwegian Amethyst Parure

This parure, which is most notable for its convertible necklace/tiara, has been worn by all three of the senior Norwegian royal ladies: Queen Sonja, Crown Princess Mette-Marit, and Princess Martha Louise.

8. The Duchess of Cornwall’s Amethysts

Camilla wears a gorgeous pearl, diamond, and amethyst necklace with a large heart-shaped amethyst pendant. The necklace was a wedding present to the Queen Mother from Queen Alexandra; Camilla often pairs it with coordinating amethyst earrings.

7. The Nassau Amethysts

The vast Luxembourg jewel vaults contain not one but two amethyst tiaras. One is a bandeau that features oval-cut stones, while the other includes rectangular gems. Both are regularly worn by the ladies of the grand ducal family, often with a beautiful amethyst necklace and earrings.

6. Queen Mary’s Amethyst Necklace

Sadly, Queen Mary’s amethyst necklace and tiara are no longer with the Windsors; they were sold at auction. However, the lovely necklace from the set still exists; it’s even been worn once at a gala at the Victoria and Albert Museum by Vogue editor Anna Wintour.

5. The Duchess of Windsor’s Cartier Bib Necklace

This astonishing amethyst, turquoise, and diamond necklace was made for the Duchess of Windsor by Cartier in 1947. It’s often featured today in museum exhibitions.

4. The Bavarian Amethyst Demi-Parure

In 2013, Sotheby’s auctioned this amethyst and diamond demi-parure. The nineteenth-century set was sold by members of the former royal family of Bavaria; auction notes indicated that the family called it “Queen Amalia’s Parure,” after the former Bavarian queen of Greece.

One of the oldest sets of jewels in the Windsor collection is this amethyst demi-parure, which belonged to Queen Victoria’s mother, the Duchess of Kent. The Queen rarely wears the complete set, but she does occasionally sport one of the brooches.

2. Queen Alexandra’s Amethysts

I’m extremely partial to the set of amethysts that belonged to Queen Alexandra of the United Kingdom. Sadly, they’re no longer with the family — they were auctioned by the family of Princess Maud, Countess of Southesk — but the incredible, convertible geometric floral necklace is a showstopper.

No amethyst set in any current royal collection can hold a candle to the Bernadotte family’s parure, which dates to the Napoleonic era and features enormous purple gemstones. The circlet may be difficult to wear, but when they get it right, it’s magical.

Saturday Sparkler: Princess Sibilla’s Art Deco Tiara

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The jewel vaults of the grand ducal family of Luxembourg are practically bursting at the seams with tiaras. But one of the family’s princesses actually has one that she keeps in her own safe. Princess Sibilla may be the wife of a younger royal son, but her diamond art deco tiara is all hers.

Princess Sibilla got her current royal title when she married Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg, the youngest son of Grand Duke Jean and Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte, in 1994. But Sibilla has royal blood of her own: she’s the great-granddaughter of King Alfonso XIII and Queen Ena of Spain. She’s worn tiaras from both the Spanish and Luxembourgish collections, but this tiara appears to be Sibilla’s own personal property. It’s said to have been a gift from her father, Paul-Annik Weiller.

Some have speculated that Sibilla may have received the tiara as a wedding present, but the ladies over at Luxarazzi believe she may have gotten the piece later, after she was already a Luxembourgish princess. No matter when she received the tiara, she must have rejoiced at the piece’s versatility. It can be worn both in its full form and in a smaller version, with the top row of diamonds removed. Sibilla has worn the tiara in both incarnations, and she also loaned the smaller version to her sister-in-law, Countess Diane de Nassau, for the gala the night before the wedding of the hereditary grand ducal couple in November 2012.

At the royal wedding of Princess Madeleine of Sweden, eagle-eyed royal watchers spotted a diadem that very much resembles Sibilla’s tiara on the head of Princess Silvia d’Arenberg. Many speculated that Sibilla, who has connections to the Arenbergs, loaned her tiara to Silvia for the occasion. (The Luxarazzi bloggers, who are the best resource on the ‘net for info about the Nassau family, agree that the tiaras are probably the same.) There’s never been any official confirmation, but it does seem likely that it was the same piece. If so, props to Sibilla for sharing her sparkler — more tiara fun for everyone!