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Sparkling Royal Jewels From Around the World

Jewels of the Upcoming Chinese State Visit

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Next week, the President of China will make a state visit to Britain. He and Madame Peng will stay at Buckingham Palace in London with the Queen, and a glittering state banquet will be held on Tuesday evening. The last state visit by a Chinese president to Britain happened in 2005 (pictured above).

Much of the media speculation about the state banquet has surrounded the possibility that the Duchess of Cambridge will attend. There has been no official announcement either way, although the palace has announced that both William and Kate will take part in other events during the state visit. The only announcements made so far about the state banquet are that the Queen and Prince Philip will attend, and Prince Charles won’t — which means we also surely won’t see Camilla either.

The engagement schedule on the British royal website notes that Princess Anne and the Countess of Wessex both have engagements in other parts of Britain on Tuesday. The Countess of Wessex is scheduled for an evening event in Exeter, but Princess Anne’s meeting in Manchester looks to be a daytime affair, so it’s possible she may make it back for the banquet.

At the last state banquet (when the Mexican president visited Britain in March), the royal ladies in attendance were the Queen, the Duchess of Cornwall, Princess Anne, and the Duchess of Gloucester. Princess Michael of Kent is also sometimes a guest at state banquets.

Let’s start the tiara and jewel guessing now, shall we? Based on what we know, I think we can assume that the possible guests at the banquet include the Queen, Princess Anne, the Duchess of Cambridge, the Duchess of Gloucester, and Princess Michael of Kent. Here are the tiaras usually worn by each of the likely royal guests. (Of course, we could always see surprises!) Let us know which jewels you hope to see on display in the comments below!

This Week in Royal Jewels: October 2-8

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October 2-8, 2015
We’ve got royal earrings and necklaces galore this week — be sure to vote for your favorites in the poll below!
10. On Monday, Princess Sofia of Sweden wore small diamond earrings, her engagement and wedding rings, and a Project Playground bracelet at the start of a two-day trip to her hometown, Dalarna. The pin she has affixed to her lapel is a small gold Dala horse, an icon of Dalarna and of Sweden in general. (Trivia: I put one on my Christmas tree every year!)

9. Queen Letizia of Spain wore her Tous pearl drop earrings at a journalism awards ceremony on Tuesday.

8. At Ascot Racecourse on Friday, the Countess of Wessex wore pearl cluster earrings by Dior.

7. Infanta Elena of Spain wore a brightly colored necklace and matching earrings in shades of blue and green in Seville on Monday.

6. Queen Maxima of the Netherlands also chose blue-toned beads on Monday, this time for a meeting with President Kagame of Rwanda.

5. For a luncheon on Tuesday with President Erdogan of Turkey, Queen Mathilde of the Belgians wore diamond earrings.

4. On Friday, Queen Sofia of Spain wore a black and white statement necklace and a glittering sunflower pin for the annual Red Cross fundraiser in Madrid.

3. Princess Anne of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Dowager Duchess of Calabria (born Princess Anne of Orleans) was the picture of elegance in pearls as she greeted well-wishers on Wednesday following the death of her husband, Infante Carlos. He was a cousin of the reigning Spanish royals; his father, Infante Alfonso, was a grandson of King Alfonso XII of Spain. Carlos and his family follow the descendants of King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia in the line of succession to the Spanish throne. (Both of Juan Carlos’s sisters renounced their succession rights when they married.)

2. At the start of a state visit to Lithuania on Wednesday, Queen Silvia of Sweden wore pearls (including Princess Sibylla’s pearl necklace) to sign a guest book.

1. My top spot of the week goes to Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands. She glittered in diamonds — including the family’s floral bracelet, which some have speculated was a gift from the Sultan of Brunei — during a visit to Boston, where she attended an exhibit of paintings by Rembrandt and Vermeer.