The Court Jeweller

Sparkling Royal Jewels From Around the World

Here’s to a Sparkling 2020!

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Happy New Year, everyone! 


(And I have to wish a very Happy Blog Birthday to The Court Jeweller, which officially turns six years old today!)

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The last year has been such an exciting one, both in the royal world and for me personally. We witnessed imperial enthronements and royal weddings in 2019 — and I celebrated a wedding of my very own! I’m so thankful for all your kind words and support in the past year.

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As we move into a new year and a new decade, we’ll certainly have lots of sparkle to look forward to! We’ve already got a few things on the docket, including two Dutch state visits, Queen Margrethe II’s 80th birthday, a wedding in Britain, Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel’s 10th wedding anniversary, and a new baby in Luxembourg!

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So here’s a toast to the new year — may we all have happy, healthy, prosperous, and sparkling months ahead. (As always, we’ll be here bright and early tomorrow with our first major glittering event of 2020 — New Year’s jewels in Denmark!) What are you looking forward to this year?



Queen Ena’s Brooch for Letizia

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Queen Letizia of Spain just keeps surprising us with more and more heirloom royal jewels, and I couldn’t be more delighted! This week, she reached for Queen Ena’s Gray Pearl Drop Brooch.

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The occasion for the brooch-wearing was a formal one: the Pascua Militar, the annual new year military parade and celebrations in Madrid. As usual, the day began outdoors for the military parade…

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…and then moved inside the Royal Palace for a reception.

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Letizia debuted another piece from the joyas de pasar, the collection of jewels that Queen Ena designated to pass from monarch to monarch in Spain. (More on the entire collection here!) This time, she chose the “broche con perla grande gris pálido rodeada de brillantes y del cual cuelga una perla en forma de pera,” a brooch with a large, pale gray pearl surrounded by diamonds, from which hangs a pear-shaped pearl.

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The brooch has two notable features that help distinguish it from other royal brooches. The top portion features a pale gray pearl surrounded by a double cluster of diamonds, while other similar pieces from the Spanish royal vaults feature only a single diamond cluster. Also, the pearl pendant is suspended from an additional chevron of diamonds, providing it with a sort of diamond frame.

Queen Ena wears the gray pearl cluster brooch with its pendant drop in a portrait, ca. 1920s

That chevron-style frame is clearly visible in this photograph of Ena, taken in the 1920s. You’ll note here that the brooch only features a single cluster of diamonds around the round pearl. The second row of diamonds was a later addition, made during Ena’s lifetime.

PIERRE-PHILIPPE MARCOU/AFP/Getty Images

Before Letizia, the most recent wearer of the brooch was, of course, her mother-in-law, Queen Sofia. (Under the terms of Ena’s bequest, King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia had the use of the collection until his abdication, when they passed to King Felipe and Queen Letizia.)

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Two years ago, Letizia also began wearing another similar heirloom brooch from the Spanish royal vaults: the Countess of Barcelona’s Pearl Drop Brooch. The piece is also set with large pearls, but note that (unlike Ena’s brooch) it features only a single cluster of diamonds and no frame section above the pendant. (I think I might like the Countess of Barcelona’s brooch slightly more on Letizia — its simpler design suits her.)

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Along with Queen Ena’s brooch, Letizia wore a pair of embellished pearl stud earrings.

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This angle gives you a better view of the silver-toned design on the pearl.

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And here’s a look at Letizia’s entire ensemble. (The long skirt is part of the dress code for the event.)

New Year Tiaras in Japan

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The Japanese imperial family gathered on Tuesday in Tokyo, where Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko received the annual new year greetings at the imperial palace for the last time. We saw plenty of jewels for the event — including a tiara from a surprise attendee!

Empress Michiko has not worn tiaras for some time, but she always sparkles in fantastic jewels for this annual event. This year, she chose diamonds, including an impressive necklace with a pendant drop and earrings.

JAPAN POOL VIA JIJI PRESS/AFP/Getty Images

The biggest surprise on the day came from the woman who will become empress later this year: Crown Princess Masako, who attended the ceremony for the first time in more than a decade. In previous years, we’ve only seen photographs of her arriving at the palace.

This year, she donned the Pearl Sunburst Tiara to extend her new year greetings to her parents-in-law alongside her husband, Crown Prince Naruhito. (They will ascend to the Chrysanthemum throne when Emperor Akihito abidcates this spring.)

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Masako headed up a long line of imperial princesses at the ceremony, all of whom wore traditional parures of matching diamond and pearl jewels. After Masako, we see the Princess Akishino wearing her wedding tiara, followed by her daughters, Princess Mako (wearing her parure) and Princess Kako (wearing hers).

Next comes Princess Tomohito of Mikasa (in her diamond parure), followed by her daughters, Princess Akiko (in her parure) and Princess Yoko (in hers).

And then we’ve got a perennial favorite, the Princess Takamado, wearing her wedding parure, and Princess Tsuguko, wearing her diamond parure.