The Court Jeweller

Sparkling Royal Jewels From Around the World

Review: Dressing the Queen

by // Leave a Comment

Angela Kelly’s Dressing the Queen: The Jubilee Wardrobe (2013) [1]
The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee year inspired the publication of a trio of books dedicated to her jewels and clothing: Diamonds: A Jubilee Celebration (which I reviewed earlier here), Hugh Roberts’s staggering The Queen’s Diamonds (which I will review soon), and today’s book, Dressing the Queen: The Jubilee Wardrobe. While the two books on Elizabeth II’s diamonds focus more on the history of the objects themselves, Dressing the Queen tells the story not only of her clothes and jewels but also of the staff who make her immaculate appearance possible at each public engagement.
The book was written by Angela Kelly, whose role is “Personal Assistant, Adviser and Curator to the Queen.” Because Kelly is not a historian by trade, her book is more conversational than the other, weightier tomes; it also feels more personal, and it gives some truly fascinating insights into the work that goes into creating and caring for the garments and accessories worn by the Queen. There are extensive color photographs here of the fabrics used to make the Queen’s coats and dresses, plus plenty of photographs of the designers and sewers who actually make the clothing. Incredible attention to detail is required at every stage of the creation of a single outfit, and Kelly’s book outlines the research and planning behind the work. (Plus: we get lots of photos of hats — and you know how I feel about that — and a photograph of HM’s impressive collection of plastic umbrellas!)
For jewel lovers, the book offers more than ten pages of photographs and content that present a unique behind-the-scenes look at the jewelry worn regularly by the Queen. The books on the diamonds give us a great deal of information about their history; this book shows us how they’re actually used today. The jewelry section opens with two full pages of photographs of brooches worn by the Queen, including her Cartier clips and the Victorian bow brooches. There are also detailed photos of the Queen’s rubies, aquamarines, pearls, and sapphires, plus a photograph of the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara and some of the queen’s diamond necklaces. We also get to see the way that these stunning jewels are presented to the Queen so that she can choose the specific pieces that she wants to wear: on a tray with a lace cover hand-sewn by Queen Mary.

Kelly is also the person in charge of the day-to-day maintenance of the Queen’s jewelry, including inspection and basic cleaning. (The big, complicated jewelry issues are left to the crown jeweller.) Kelly’s hands-on relationship to royal jewels gives us my favorite jewelry tidbit from this book: a series of photographs of Kelly working with the Vladimir tiara (pictured above in a photograph from 2006). The photos and accompanying text explain how Kelly swaps out the tiara’s pearls for the set of Cambridge emeralds, and the images allow you to see how the individual pearls and emeralds are stored (in numbered pouches) and how the pearls and emeralds attach to the back of the sparkler. This section is my absolute favorite part of the entire book — I love seeing the way that royal jewels “work,” for lack of a better word!
The book closes with a series of photographs of the various outfits worn by the Queen during her jubilee celebrations, including the elaborate ensemble she wore during the Thames river pageant. These outfits are discussed in minute detail, and original sketches are included. We get occasional tidbits of new info from Kelly — the way she worked directly with Danny Boyle’s team to create the perfect outfit for the complicated Olympics opening ceremony film and appearance, for example — but overall, Kelly is just as circumspect as you might expect a loyal member of the Queen’s staff to be.
This is a fun book — and a relatively inexpensive one, at under $30 for a new hardcover copy — and for those interested in royal fashion, it’s a no-brainer purchase. I also think it’s a nice addition to the collection of those who love royal jewels, too, as it provides a unique perspective on the everyday use of the jewelry. (And if the Vladimir tiara is your favorite? Buy it now!) Definitely recommended.
NOTES, PHOTO CREDITS, AND LINKS
1. Cropped version of the cover of Dressing the Queen; source here.

Saturday Sparkler: The Connaught Fringe Tiara

by // Leave a Comment

The Duchess of Connaught wears her fringe tiara, 1902 [1]

There are many convertible diamond fringe tiaras in royal vaults today, but the fringe tiara of the Connaught family has a long royal history — longer than that of many other tiaras in the collections of various British royals.

Louise Margaret [2]

The first recorded owner of this diamond fringe is the Duchess of Kent, mother of Queen Victoria; she left the tiara to the queen. In 1879, Victoria gave the tiara as a wedding present to her new daughter-in-law, Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia, the new of Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn. Princess Louise wore the fringe as a necklace at her wedding, opting to wear a wreath of flowers on her head instead of a tiara (see the photograph at left). She donned the piece as a tiara, however, for one of the most important royal occasions of the early twentieth century: the 1902 coronation of her brother- and sister-in-law, King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra (see the photograph above). On that occasion, she placed the fringe atop a larger jeweled base to give it additional height, likely to complement the height of her coronet (which you can see with the tiara in this picture postcard — it also features her daughters, Margaret and Patricia).

From Louise Margaret, the tiara was passed to her younger daughter, Princess Patricia of Connaught (who renounced her titles on her marriage to a commoner, becoming Lady Patricia Ramsay). It’s safe to say that Louise’s elder daughter wasn’t much in need of family tiaras to wear. Margaret had married the future King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden and had access to the Bernadotte jewel collection (and the glittering wedding presents she had received in 1905).

Lady Patricia wore the fringe tiara at the 1937 coronation of King George VI; you can see it in this portrait of Patricia with her niece, then Crown Princess Ingrid of Denmark, and Ingrid’s husband, the future King Frederik IX. From that point, however, we lose sight of the piece. It was apparently not included in the estate auction of her jewels in 1974. Perhaps it remains with the family today? [3]

NOTES, PHOTO CREDITS, AND LINKS
1. Cropped and edited version of an image in the public domain; source here.
2. Cropped version of an image in the public domain; source here.
3. A version of this post originally appeared at A Tiara a Day in March 2013.

Royal Aquamarines

by // Leave a Comment

Queen Elizabeth II wears her Brazilian aquamarine parure [1]
It’s March, which means it’s time to celebrate another birthstone gem: the aquamarine! [2] This semi-precious stone, which flirts with both green and blue in its various hues, is a calming stone. It’s also supposed to offer protection to those who travel on the sea, which is appropriate given its maritime name. Aquamarines are extremely popular in the world of royal jewels — let’s look at some of the most interesting examples out there, shall we?
Countess of Wessex [3]
The Brazilian Aquamarine Parure
Few reigning monarchs have as many aquamarines in their royal vaults as Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, who has been collecting a tidy number of aquamarine pieces since her coronation in 1953. That year, the people of Brazil gifted her with an aquamarine necklace and earrings to celebrate the start of her reign. Some of the largest, best-quality aquamarines in the world are found in Brazil, and they’ve continued to supplement the Queen’s collection over the years. In 1958, they added a bracelet and a brooch, and in 1971, they gave her an aquamarine hair ornament. Elizabeth liked the set so much that she had a tiara commissioned to match, which she has had reset over the years; you can see its current incarnation above. She’s also got a smaller aquamarine tiara in a floral design, now worn by her daughter-in-law, the Countess of Wessex (see the photograph at left). And that’s only part of Elizabeth’s aquamarine collection. Notably, among other pieces,  she also frequently sports a pair of Cartier aquamarine clips, given to her by her parents as an eighteenth birthday present.
The Dutch Aquamarine Parure
The Brits aren’t the only ones with a substantial collection of aquamarines. The Dutch royal vaults contain a married parure of aquamarine jewels, given over the course of a decade to Queen Juliana. It includes an art deco tiara, a necklace, a rectangular brooch, and a pair of earrings. Juliana’s husband, Prince Bernhard, also gave her a rather enormous diamond and aquamarine pendant; today, that piece is often worn suspended from a diamond brooch by the current Dutch consort, Queen Maxima [4].
Alexandra Feodorovna’s Aquamarines
The last tsarina of Russia, Alexandra Feodorovna, was fond of aquamarines. Her husband, Tsar Nicholas II, presented her with a large Siberian aquamarine and diamond brooch as an engagement present in 1894. The piece was made by Fabergé, and today it’s in the vaults at Wartski’s in London. Alix also owned an aquamarine tiara that’s right up there on my list of personal favorites: a diamond and aquamarine kokoshnik that featured a stunning geometric design. The fate of that tiara is unknown; you’ll see modern copies of it floating around the internet (hint: if the image of the tiara is in color, not black and white, it’s a copy of the original tiara, not the real thing) [5], but the real tiara, like so many Romanov jewels, has apparently vanished.
Ena of Spain [6]
Queen Ena’s Aquamarine Tiara
After she married King Alfonso XIII of Spain, Ena of Battenberg put in a tiara request: she wanted a tiara featuring drop pearls. Ansorena made a delicate diamond and pearl tiara for her (you can see the original pearl version of the tiara in the photograph on the right). Later, Ena’s daughter, Beatriz, decided to have the piece altered by Bulgari, swapping out the pearls for a set of Brazilian aquamarines. The entire tiara was reworked, transitioning from an Edwardian piece to a sparkler made of interlocking circles, much like the British Vladimir tiara. Today, the aquamarine tiara, which also has a coordinating necklace, stomacher, bracelet, ring, and earrings, belongs to Ena’s granddaughters, Sandra and Olimpia. However, the piece has also recently been worn by another royal: Princess Sibilla, Olimpia’s daughter, who is the wife of Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg. Despite efforts by the current Spanish king to acquire the aquamarines [7], they remain with Ena’s Italian/Luxembourgish descendants.
These, of course, are only a selection of the aquamarine pieces in royal hands today — which aquamarine jewels top your must-have list?
NOTES, PHOTO CREDITS, AND LINKS
1. Cropped and retouched version of a photograph available via Wikimedia Commons; source here.
2. Trivia: March also has a second birthstone, the bloodstone, which is also meant to have healing powers. I assume all of you March babies out there are extremely healthy and evenly tempered.
3. Cropped version of a photograph available via Wikimedia Commons; source here.
4. As always, much more about these Dutch jewels can be found at John’s website.
5. Ursula has a page dedicated to the aquamarines, but again, the color images of the tiara, necklace, and earrings are of reproduction pieces.
6. Cropped version of a photograph in the public domain; source here.
7. See the Luxarazzi blog entry on the aquamarines for details on the attempted acquisition.