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Sparkling Royal Jewels From Around the World

The Wisborg Amethysts

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Wikimedia Commons

We’re all familiar with the grand suite of amethysts that belongs to the Swedish royals, but today we’ve got a look at some gorgeous amethyst jewels from a junior branch of the family, the Wisborgs.

Wikimedia Commons

The set belongs to Countess Marianne Bernadotte af Wisborg. She’s the widow of Prince Sigvard, the second son of King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden and Princess Margaret of Connaught. Sigvard gave up his royal title when he married a commoner in 1934, but he was subsequently granted the title of Count of Wisborg by a distant relative, Grand Duchess Charlotte of Luxembourg. In 1961, he married his third wife, Swedish actress Marianne Lindberg. Today, she’s the last of her royal generation, and the only surviving aunt of King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden.

Wikimedia Commons

Marianne is a noted fashion icon, and her collection of jewelry includes a modern suite of gold and amethyst jewelry. The set includes a necklace, which is also able to be set on a frame and worn as a tiara, as you can see above. The suite also features earrings and a ring.

Wikimedia Commons

Marianne’s most prominent recent appearance in the amethysts came in June 2013, when she wore the set for the wedding of her great-niece, Princess Madeleine of Sweden, in Stockholm.

Vittorio Zunino Celotto/Getty Images

On that occasion, Marianne wore the necklace as a diadem, as well as the earrings. As you can see in the photograph above, she also wore the ring on her right hand.

Wikimedia Commons

The amethysts in the suite are a particularly lovely shade of violet, and the gold setting emphasizes the reddish tones in the color of the stones. Purple is such a flattering color for so many women — I only wish more royal collections included parures featuring amethysts!

Queen Alexandrine’s Russian Sapphire Tiara on Display

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Bruun Rasmussen

Good news, tiara fans: we’ve got another chance to get a glimpse of a classic Danish royal sparkler! Queen Alexandrine’s Russian Sapphire Tiara has gone on public display in Copenhagen.

Caroline-Mathilde wears the original jewel in its bandeau form (Bruun Rasmussen)

The tiara, which is generally attributed to Bolin, was given by Emperor Nicholas II and Empress Alexandra of Russia to an imperial cousin, Alexandrine of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, when she married another cousin, the future King Christian X of Denmark, in 1898. The piece was originally a convertible bandeau. In 1933, Alexandrine gave the jewel to her daughter-in-law, Princess Caroline-Mathilde, who wears it in its original bandeau form above.

Countess Anne-Dorte wears the tiara, 2010 (KELD NAVNTOFT/AFP/Getty Images)

In the 1960s, Caroline-Mathilde commissioned alterations to the bandeau, having it transformed into a more traditional tiara. She bequeathed the new version of the sparkler to her son, Count Christian of Rosenborg, and it was subsequently worn by his wife, Countess Anne-Dorte. (You can read a far more detailed history of the tiara over here!)

Bruun Rasmussen

After the death of Countess Anne-Dorte in 2014, the tiara was inherited by her daughters, Countess Josephine, Countess Camilla, and Countess Feodora of Rosenborg. They decided to sell the tiara. Bruun Rasmussen auctioned the diadem in 2018, and when the hammer fell, the piece sold for the top of its estimate: two million kroner, or about $290,000.

Ida Guldbæk Arentsen/Kongehuset

We don’t know the identity of the buyer, but the tiara has since resurfaced. Delightfully, the diadem was recently loaned to a new exhibition at the Amalienborg Museum. The piece is displayed with several other Russian jewels in the new Fabergé Chamber. It may not be a Fabergé tiara, but it certainly fits with the Russian theme!

Queen Paola’s Diamond Necklace Tiara

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Mark Renders/Getty Images

Queen Paola of Belgium’s jewelry box has always been on the petite side. As the wife of a younger son, the jewelry she received at the beginning of her marriage was more modest — and it actually remained that way throughout her life as a princess and as a queen. Today, we’re talking about one of the lovely small diamond pieces that she owns: a diamond necklace that can also be worn as a tiara.

Mark Renders/Getty Images

Paola has been wearing the piece as a necklace and as a tiara since the early years of her marriage. There’s speculation that she was given the necklace either as a wedding present in 1959 (possibly by her new husband?) or as a gift in honor of the birth of her first child, King Philippe, the following year. It’s essentially comprised of two rows of diamonds — a chain from which a row of tiny drops are suspended — and a slim pendant piece.

Mark Renders/Getty Images, Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

Paola’s modest jewel collection actually includes two delicate diamond necklaces, and sometimes people confuse the two. This piece is easy to identify because of the V-shape that it forms, thanks to the large central pendant section. In a way, it resembles the Y-necklaces that were so popular during the 1990s — but of course, a highly glamorous version. In comparison, the second diamond necklace includes festoon designs. The side-by-side photos above should help you tell the difference between the two.

Keystone Pictures USA/ZUMAPRESS/Alamy

While the festoon-style necklace hasn’t been worn as a tiara, Paola wore today’s necklace as a tiara several times as a young princess. You can just see the small tiara peeking out of Paola’s complicated hairstyle in the photo above, taken in October 1967.

JEAN MEUNIER/AFP via Getty Images

Paola wore the necklace often during her years as Princess of Liege. Above, she wears the jewel during an official visit from French President François Mitterrand in October 1983.

Mark Renders/Getty Image

During her years as Belgium’s queen consort, Paola had access to two significant tiaras: the Nine Provinces Tiara, reserved for the nation’s queen, and Queen Elisabeth’s Art Deco Bandeau, which she was given by her father-in-law. But the delicate diamond necklace still played an important part in her jewel collection; above, she pairs the Nine Provinces with the delicate necklace during a state visit from the Norwegian royals in May 2003.

TOUSSAINT KLUITERS/AFP via Getty Images

She often reached for the necklace for black-tie events, which generally require a lot of sparkle but not a tiara. One of these, pictured above, was the pre-wedding dinner honoring the future King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands in January 2002.

DAMIEN MEYER/AFP via Getty Images

She has also worn the necklace for more formal daytime events. In July 2011, she chose the piece for the wedding of Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene of Monaco.

Mark Renders/Getty Images

When Paola’s husband, King Albert II, abdicated, the Nine Provinces Tiara was transferred to the collection of the new queen consort, Mathilde. But along with her diamond bandeau tiara, Paola also retained this necklace. The former king and queen have largely kept a low profile since the abdication, but if we do so Paola appear at another glittering event any time soon, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if this favorite necklace is worn as a prominent accessory.

Note: This is an updated version of an earlier post, with new text and images.