Don’t Miss a Single Sparkling Moment! Sign up for The Court Jeweller Newsletter

The Court Jeweller

Sparkling Royal Jewels From Around the World

Jewels on Film: Rainier and Grace’s Religious Wedding

by // Leave a Comment

Rainier and Grace marry at Monaco’s cathedral (Photo: AFP/Getty Images)
Sixty years ago today, Prince Rainier III of Monaco married Hollywood actress Grace Kelly in a grand ceremony at Monaco’s cathedral. The bride’s wedding ensemble was made by MGM designer Helen Rose and paid for by the studio. Instead of a tiara, Grace walked down the aisle wearing a juliet cap embroidered with seed pearls and a similarly-embellished Catholic prayer book.
Thanks to the magic of the internet, we can relive the ceremony today. Enjoy!

Royal Jewel Rewind: Grace and Rainier’s Pre-Wedding Gala

by // Leave a Comment

A stamp released to mark the wedding of Prince Rainier III of Monaco and Grace Kelly (Photo: STF/AFP/Getty Images)

Today is the 60th anniversary of the civil wedding celebrations of Prince Rainier III of Monaco and his American bride, Grace Kelly. After the pair’s civil wedding service at the Palais Princier, a gala was held at the principality’s opera house. Grace wore gala jewels, including a tiara, for the first time that evening.

With her Lanvin gown, Grace wore two of her wedding presents. One was her tiara: the diamond and ruby tiara that she had been given by the Société des Bains de Mer. The three major elements of the tiara can be removed and worn as brooches.

The necklace that Grace wore to the gala was also a wedding present. Prince Rainier gave her the three-stranded diamond necklace, which was made by Cartier. Estimates of the piece’s total carat weight vary, but it’s somewhere in the neighborhood of 60 carats.

Photo: Still image from MGM’s The Wedding in Monaco

Here’s a color view of Grace in her gala ensemble, complete with tiara, necklace, and the Order of Saint-Charles.

You can also see black-and-white footage of Grace’s arrival at the gala at the beginning of this British Pathe newsreel.

Grace also posed for a series of portraits in the same Lanvin gown and necklace; in the pictures, she wore her diamond tiara. The name of the maker of the piece has never been shared, but we know that it is made of 256 diamonds set in platinum. It’s the second of the two tiaras Grace appears to have owned personally, and today it is also a part of the Palais Princier collection.

Photo: Still image from MGM’s The Wedding in Monaco

Grace’s new mother-in-law, Princess Charlotte, Duchess of Valentinois, also attended the pre-wedding gala. She wore the diamond and pearl tiara that Cartier had made for her in 1949.

Here’s a clearer picture of the tiara, which is sometimes now worn by her granddaughter, Princess Caroline. Like Grace’s jewels, this tiara is owned by the Palais Princier collection.

This Week in Royal Jewels: March 25-31

by // Leave a Comment

March 25-31, 2016

A bit of a casual week when it comes to royal jewels — but there’s also a definite trend happening in the earring department. Be sure to vote for your favorite in the poll below!
Photos: Gabriel Bouys/AFP/Getty Images

10. To kick things off, we’re reaching back to an event we didn’t cover last week: the visit of the grand ducal family of Luxembourg to the Vatican. All three of the grand ducal daughters-in-law were in attendance. Hereditary Grand Duchess Stephanie wore a delicate pair of pendant earrings; Princess Claire donned an intriguing pair of stud earrings, and Princess Tessy selected a classic pair of pearl drop earrings.

Photo: Gabriel Bouys/AFP/Getty Images

9. Grand Duchess Maria Teresa (holding her granddaughter, Princess Amalia) wore a pair of drop earrings with round pearls for the papal visit. Note that she’s wearing white, while her daughters-in-law are wearing black; as the wife of a Catholic monarch, Maria Teresa has the right to exercise the privilege du blanc.

Photo: Andreas Solaro/AFP/Getty Images

8. King Albert II and Queen Paola of Belgium were also in Vatican City this week. For an outdoor mass in St. Peter’s Square on Easter Sunday, Paola wore a pair of diamond and pearl stud earrings, plus a delicate necklace and bracelets.

Photo: Valery Hache/AFP/Getty Images

7. Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene of Monaco observed Good Friday at the Palais Princier; Charlene wore a delicate cross necklace and a pair of trendy back-to-front earrings.

Photo: Kirsty Wigglesworth – WPA Pool/Getty Images

6. Also in back-to-front earrings: the Countess of Wessex, who wore a pair on Easter Sunday at Windsor.

Photo: Khalil Mazraawi/AFP/Getty Images

5, On the same day, Queen Rania of Jordan wore a pair of marbleized back-to-front earrings (reportedly from Dior) as she welcomed UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon to the Royal Palace in Amman.

Photo: Jaime Reina/AFP/Getty Images

4. For an Easter Sunday mass in Palma de Mallorca, Queen Letizia of Spain wore her unusual gold hoop earrings with interior filagree detail.

Photo: Carlos Alvarez/Getty Images

3. On Wednesday, Letizia chose her diamond sunburst earrings by Yanes for a microfinance event in Madrid.

Photo: Cati Cladera – Pool/Getty Images

2. Queen Sofia of Spain loaded up the necklaces and bracelets for Easter mass, including her whimsical Easter egg necklace.

Photo: Kirsty Wigglesworth – WPA Pool/Getty Images

1. It was a wild and windy Easter morning at Windsor, but Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom still glittered in one of her favorite pieces: the Frosted Sunflower Brooch.

Note: I’m making a small change to the commenting policy here. Because links cause such a hassle with the spam filter on the Disqus system, I’m going to request that commenters no longer use links when posting comments here. I think that will streamline the system a bit. Thanks for your patience as I’ve tried to approve comments in the past — hopefully this will make that faster!