The Swedish royal family was out in force for the presentation of this year’s Nobel Prizes in Stockholm on Wednesday. Let’s have a look at the plentiful jewels, shall we?
Queen Silvia wore a set we’ve chatted quite a bit about lately: the Leuchtenberg Sapphires. (Much more on the historic parure here!)
Silvia also wore the sash and star of the Order of the Seraphim, plus the family order of her husband, King Carl XVI Gustaf.
The photos at the banquet provide an unusual chance each year to see bejeweled royals from the back, giving us a glimpse of their intricate hairstyles and of the small brooches they use to secure the back of their order sashes. The Queen used a small round diamond brooch to fasten her sash.
Crown Princess Victoria wore a tiara that has become one of her signature pieces: the Baden Fringe Tiara, which belonged to Queen Victoria of Sweden.
Around her neck, Victoria wore the large diamond cross pendant necklace from the Bernadotte collection. Her diamond earrings are also family treasures, having been worn by Queen Lovisa. (These have been in the past identified as a part of the Brazilian parure, but that claim has been disputed.) Her order sash is secured by the family’s small diamond and ruby brooch, a piece that Queen Silvia has used as a pendant on a necklace in the past.
But Victoria wore an even bigger brooch in her hair: the diamond lozenge brooch that belonged to Victoria of Baden. This piece from the Bernadotte collection was a favorite of the late Princess Lilian. Victoria’s also wearing a small diamond rosette to secure her sash.
Princess Madeleine wore the Modern Fringe Tiara, the same piece she wore on her wedding day. Long described as a private jewel belonging to Queen Silvia, many are beginning to suspect that it has been given to Madeleine, who has worn it pretty much exclusively in recent years.
Madeleine also dipped into the family foundation, borrowing the earrings and a brooch from the amethyst parure.
She also secured her sash with a small diamond brooch.
The king’s youngest sister, Princess Christina, wore the Six-Button Tiara. She’s also wearing the Order of the Seraphim and her brother’s family order.
Here’s a better angle on Christina’s diamond earrings and necklace.
Unfortunately, the newest member of the family went tiara-less to the Nobels this year. After she marries Prince Carl Philip next year, Sofia Hellqvist will have access to the family’s jewel vaults, but for this occasion, she went with simpler jewels.
With her stud earrings, Sofia wore a brooch in her hair. On first glance, I thought it might be from the family’s heirloom suite of pink topazes, but on further inspection, the stone is definitely a cabochon of some sort. And as for the tiara — well, there’s always next year!
