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| John Stillwell – WPA Pool/Getty Images |
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| John Stillwell – WPA Pool/Getty Images |
For the fantastic Dutch state banquet at Buckingham Palace in October, the Duchess of Cambridge debuted a wonderful piece of royal heirloom jewelry: Queen Alexandra’s Wedding Necklace. (Read our post on the state banquet jewels here!)
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| Grand Ladies Site |
The pearl and diamond necklace was part of a larger parure of jewelry given to Princess Alexandra of Denmark on her marriage to the future King Edward VII in 1863. She wore the necklace and brooch from the suite on her wedding day in Windsor. (There’s been much discussion about the tiara from the same set of jewelry — read our article on that sparkler over here!)
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| Grand Ladies Site |
Three decades later, Alexandra wore the necklace (hung with additional pendants) again for another important royal wedding: the nuptials of her son, the future King George V, and Princess Mary of Teck in July 1893.
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| Hulton Archive/Getty Images |
And in November 1947, the necklace was again featured at a royal wedding. Queen Elizabeth (better known to us as the Queen Mum) wore the necklace for the wedding of her daughter, the future Queen Elizabeth II) to the Duke of Edinburgh.
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| Michael Stroud/Express/Getty Images |
The necklace was one of the Queen Mother’s favorite jewels, and she often paired it with pieces from the extensive Greville bequest. Here, for an event in November 1964, she wore the necklace with the Greville Tiara (more here!) and the Greville Peardrop Earrings (more here!).
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| John Stillwell – WPA Pool/Getty Images |
In October, Kate became the first member of the royal family to wear the necklace in public since the Queen Mum’s death in 2002. She paired the necklace with Queen Mary’s Lover’s Knot Tiara (more here!) and the Collingwood Pearl Drop Earrings that belonged to Diana, Princess of Wales (more here!). You’ll also note that Kate now has the Queen’s Royal Family Order!
