royal brooch – Page 16

Queen Mary’s Russian Brooch

09.01.2019 by The Court Jeweller // Leave a Comment

Jeff Spicer/Getty Images

September is here, which means it’s officially Sapphire Season, everyone! We’re kicking things off today with a magnificent royal sapphire jewel: Queen Mary’s Russian Brooch.

Jeff Spicer/Getty Images

The brooch, made at the end of the nineteenth century, features a large diamond and a large sugarloaf sapphire set in an unusual geometric scroll design.

Empress Marie Feodorovna, ca. 1892; Queen Mary on her wedding day, July 1893 (Wikimedia Commons)

The brooch was a wedding gift to Mary of Teck from Empress Marie Feodorovna of Russia. The empress, who was born a Danish princess, was an aunt of Mary’s new husband, the future King George V of the United Kingdom.

HANNAH MCKAY/AFP/Getty Images

The brooch was one of the many pieces of jewelry that Queen Mary bequeathed to her granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth II, when she died in 1953. The Queen has worn the jewel throughout her entire reign.

TOBY MELVILLE/AFP/Getty Images

As she often does with sapphires, the Queen generally wears the brooch on clothing in shades of blue, echoing the vibrant blue hue of the gemstone.

DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP/Getty Images

One of my favorite recent outings of the brooch, though, came at Royal Ascot in 2018, when she pinned the brooch to a bright yellow outfit. The contrast created by the pairing of the sunny coat and the deep blue sapphire was visually delightful.

Princess Christina’s Golden Branch Brooch

08.18.2019 by The Court Jeweller // Leave a Comment

Jack de Nijs/Anefo/Nationaal Archief/Wikimedia Commons

While putting together yesterday’s memorial post for Princess Christina, I stumbled on a little royal jewel moment that I thought was worth exploring in more detail. Today, we’ve got a closer look at a brooch Christina received on her eighteenth birthday.

Jack de Nijs/Anefo/Nationaal Archief/Wikimedia Commons

Christina turned eighteen on February 18, 1965 — which means that it was also her golden birthday. That day, she received a special visit at Soestdijk Palace in Utrecht from members of the telecommunications service of the Royal Netherlands Army. She was the “petekind” of the service (essentially, their “godchild”) — she was born on the day that the regiment celebrates its own birthday. To jointly celebrate their day in 1965, they brought a gift to the palace for her. Above, Brigadier-General De Ruig hands her the box.

Jack de Nijs/Anefo/Nationaal Archief/Wikimedia Commons

Inside was a lovely brooch made of yellow gold and diamonds in the shape of a branch — a fitting symbol from a military unit devoted to making connections.

Jack de Nijs/Anefo/Nationaal Archief/Wikimedia Commons

Queen Juliana was on hand to help pin the brooch to her youngest daughter’s dress. You’ll note that Christina also wore bracelets on each wrist, plus a lovely pair of drop earrings. The black-and-white images make it really tough to decipher the stone, but they look quite light in color.

Jack de Nijs/Anefo/Nationaal Archief/Wikimedia Commons

Christina posed for a lovely series of birthday portraits at the photocall while wearing her new brooch.

Jack de Nijs/Anefo/Nationaal Archief/Wikimedia Commons

After receiving the lovely gift, Christina shared the wealth, offering chocolates to the members of the service delegation who had traveled to the palace.

Jack de Nijs/Anefo/Nationaal Archief/Wikimedia Commons

She also offered sweets to the press photographers who had been there to document the event, including photojournalist Cees de Boer.

Jack de Nijs/Anefo/Nationaal Archief/Wikimedia Commons

Another photographer (unfortunately not named in the caption provided by the Dutch National Archives) also selected a treat from the princess. I thought this was such a delightful little vignette. We so rarely get extensive documentation of the reception/first wear of a royal gift, and the fact that it shows Christina being so pleased with the present (and happy to share the birthday wealth with those gathered) was extra sweet. Major props to the Dutch National Archives for making so many wonderful mid-century photographs available to see and use, so that these little moments can be enjoyed.

The Colombo Floral Brooch

08.11.2019 by The Court Jeweller // Leave a Comment

Alan Porritt-Pool/Getty Images

Today’s royal brooch post was inspired by a question emailed by a reader, Jill. She was curious to know more information about this multicolored jewel, which I have dubbed in my notes as the Colombo Floral Brooch.

Cole Bennetts/Getty Images

Our provenance information on the brooch comes straight from the Royal Collection, which included the piece in its “Queen and Commonwealth: The Royal Tour” exhibition in 2009. The Queen received the brooch in October 1981 during her state visit to Sri Lanka. The piece was a gift from the Mayor of Colombo.

Cole Bennetts/Getty Images

According to the Royal Collection, the gold bouquet brooch is set with “pink, blue and yellow sapphires, garnets, rubies and aquamarine.” You’ll note that some of the gems are faceted and some are cabochons.

JON HRUSA/AFP/Getty Images

The bright, colorful brooch has proven to be a good fit for some of the Queen’s vivid outfits over the past several decades. In November 2007, she pinned it to a hot pink jacket for a visit to the Kitante Primary School in Kampala on the last day of her state visit to Uganda.

Alan Porritt-Pool/Getty Images

In October 2011, she wore the brooch with a serene blue ensemble as she inspected the guard at the Royal Military College Duntroon in Canberra.

John Stillwell – WPA Pool/Getty Images

And, very appropriately, one of the brooch’s most recent appearances came in March 2015, when she received the President of Sri Lanka for an audience at Buckingham Palace.

P.S.: Curious about a royal jewel that you’d like to see featured on The Court Jeweller? Feel free to email me at ella@thecourtjeweller.com with suggestions!