Diamond Tiara Tournament: Imperial Chrysanthemum vs Connaught Diamond

Will it be the Japanese floral sparkler or the delicate Swedish tiara?

This all-diamond tiara features one of the most important symbols of the Japanese imperial family: the chrysanthemum flower. The piece was a favorite of Michiko’s mother-in-law, Empress Nagako, who wore it on Akihito and Michiko’s wedding day in 1959. Michiko has often chosen this piece for banquets. She also wore the tiara on the wedding day of her younger son, Crown Prince Fumihito, in 1990.

This floral diamond tiara was Crown Princess Margareta of Sweden’s wedding gift from her parents, the Duke and Duchess of Connaught. The piece is endlessly convertible, able to be worn as a tiara or in two different necklace settings. After her death, the tiara was inherited by her eldest son, Prince Gustaf Adolf. It became the favorite tiara of his wife, Princess Sibylla, and the family still sentimentally associates the tiara with Sibylla. Today, it remains in the royal vaults, and you’ll often see it worn by Queen Silvia, Crown Princess Victoria, Princess Madeleine, and Princess Christina.