The Court Jeweller

Sparkling Royal Jewels From Around the World

Crown Princess Mary’s Aquamarines

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Chris Jackson/Getty Images

March’s birthstone, the gorgeous aquamarine, is a flattering and versatile stone. Nearly everyone looks good wearing aquamarine jewels! And Crown Princess Mary, who has a small personal collection of aquamarine pieces, is no exception.

Mary wears the girandole earrings and the choker necklace in Australia, March 2005 (ALAN PORRITT/AFP via Getty Images)

Mary began wearing her aquamarine jewels even before her wedding to Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark in May 2004. She owns several pieces, including an impressive choker necklace, a pair of drop earrings, and a pair of girandoles.

Mary wears the drop earrings and the choker necklace to celebrate the 60th birthday of the King of Sweden, April 2006 (Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

She often wears the aquamarines with her diamond wedding tiara. I don’t think that the provenance of these pieces has ever been confirmed, but everything I’ve read suggests that the drop earrings and the choker necklace were a gift from Crown Prince Frederik, possibly an engagement present.

Chris Jackson/Getty Images

Here’s a close up of the drop earrings, which shows the diamond accents more clearly.

Chris Jackson/Getty Images

And here’s a closer look at the pearl choker necklace. The aquamarine clasp of the choker features a frame with gemstones of a deeper blue hue, perhaps sapphires. The darker blue stones are also set as spacers within the strands of pearls.

Mary wears the girandoles and the choker necklace during the Greek state visit, May 2009 (KELD NAVNTOFT/AFP via Getty Images)

She has frequently worn the girandoles, which she’s also had since the beginning of her marriage, with the choker necklace.

TORSTEN BLACKWOOD/AFP via Getty Images

Mary wore the girandole earrings for a photoshoot at the start of her marriage, showcased here on the cover of an Australian women’s magazine in February 2005.

Mary wears the girandoles for the American-Scandinavian Foundation Dinner in New York, March 2009 (Andrew H. Walker/Getty Images)

She has often used the girandoles on their own as well. They’re substantial enough to make a statement without other pieces of coordinating jewelry.

Mary wears the girandoles at the Bambi Awards in Berlin, November 2014 (Matthias Nareyek/Getty Images)

One of my favorite outings for the girandoles came in 2014, when Mary paired them with a midnight blue gown with an asymmetrical neckline.

Mary visits the Portrait Gallery in Canberra, November 2011 (LUKAS COCH/AFP via Getty Images)

The girandole earrings are even showcased in a portrait of Mary painted by Chinese artist Jia wei Shen. The painting hangs in the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra, the capital of Mary’s native Australia.

Mary wears the stud earrings in Hamburg, February 2006 (Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)

Mary’s aquamarine collection also features a few other pieces. She wore these simple, classic aquamarine stud earrings during a visit to Germany in 2006.

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She also owns an impressive aquamarine and diamond cocktail ring.

Chris Jackson/Getty Images

I’m a big fan of Mary’s aquamarines, and I only wish she had a tiara to go along with them. What kind of sparkler would you like to see added to this married parure?

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

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!