Kent Jewels

[jonc93]

I never knew that Princess Alexandra wore the diamond and pearl tiara that Princess Michael of Kent now wears, I found a picture of her wearing it in Time magazine, when she represented the Queen at the Nigerien Independence ceremony. She was only 23 at the time, and what a beauty queen she was! Such a shame her mother didn't leave her much in the way of jewels, she sure did get a rinky dink share, it would have been nice if she had gotten this tiara and not Princess Pushy...
Imageshack - princessalexandranigeri.jpg

 

[Zonk]

The concept of the jewels and who got what was based on this concept:

Princess Marina left few jewels for her daughter, Princess Alexandra because she believed it was the husbands duty ( in this case Angus Olgivy) to provide for his wife. Thus, she felt that Alexandra would in turn get her own jewels. In addition, as Eddie would be marrying the next Duchess of Kent it was only right that Eddie get some jewels and because Michael was the younger son, he should get some as well. She did leave some to Alexandra but the major items went to the sons.


I read it somewhere, and for the life of me, I can't remember if it was in a bio of Princess Marina, Princess Alexandra or here.

I do agree with Alex's thoughts about the jewels being left in trust, as well as the idea that as the family gets further removed from teh throne, the need for such jewels are no longer needed. Look at the Fife tiara.....that is the future for some of the Kent and Gloucester jewels as well.

 

[jonc93]

I read the same thing here before too! Well she does have enough pieces that have suited her well. I guess it's better to be left a few pieces and not auction them, then be left a lot and auction off a lot like the Duke of Kent.

 

[Tilia C.]

Were those brooches which Princess Michael wore in her hair at the wedding gala in Monaco? I haven't seen this hair ornament before.

 

[Dierna23]

Yeap, it were the diamond daisies she inherited from Marina. Duchess of Kent | Diamond Daisies

 

[Tilia C.]

Thanks Dierna! They are very nice, good to see Marie-Christine playing around with them. I looks like she combined the floral brooches with a diamond leaf brooch and some pearl hairpins. I hope that some close-ups will appear soon and show more detail.

 

[RubyPrincess168]

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KCNqUkSTu...00/AlbertCharleneWeddingTiarasPrincesses2.jpg

I know Princess Micheal has a tiara or two - this is just wrong!

 

[Tilia C.]

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KCNqUkSTu...00/AlbertCharleneWeddingTiarasPrincesses2.jpg

I know Princess Micheal has a tiara or two - this is just wrong!

She has two tiaras, a fringe tiara and a festoon tiara. Both are from her mother in law Princess Marina. I think she wanted to wear something different for a change. She's know for re-arranging her jewellery.

 

[agami.pearl]

She also worn beautiful necklace/choker at the wedding made from pearls some kind of blue stones.

 

[countess felicitas]

I agree - Princess Michael obviously loves to play around with her jewelry which is great - gives us enough to talk - but this arrangement somehow also does not work for me.

 

[COUNTESS]

I am not so sure it is the arrangement, I think her hair was a mess.

 

[rubies]

I am not so sure it is the arrangement, I think her hair was a mess.

I agree, while I love when our princesses play with their jewels in different ways this doesn't look right.

 

[maria-olivia]

This time her arrangement jewelry was a disaster .. to much to mixed , daisies as tiara did not pass with her heavy dress. Her earrings were nice but I id not like her necklace.
What s Al Bina 's Opinion about PM ?.

 

[muriel]

President Of Turkey Abdullah Gul Speaks At The Guildhall In

Note M-C's pearls at the Guildhall yesterday at a reception for the visiting Turkish President

 

[NGalitzine]

^^^^
I thought she looked a bit costumey at the Guildhall. Not a successful look.

 

[muriel]

^^^^
I thought she looked a bit costumey at the Guildhall. Not a successful look.

Its not often that M-C gets to host an event related to a State visit, so I guess this is her opportunity to play the part. She also does not have any royal orders, so she does have to find her own baubles to play dressing up.

 

[Warren]

Princess Michael - Guildhall Banquet for the President of Turkey, November 2011

v Princess Michael of Kent
> courtesy of Gert-Jan at the RJOTWMB
thumbnail cropped from a larger image and not subject to copyright

 

[Princess of Durham]

I actually find this look very attractive. It is both restrained and opulent, not overdone as she can sometimes be.

 

[ldmemail]

I actually find this look very attractive. It is both restrained and opulent, not overdone as she can sometimes be.

This is something that HRH has done a number of times and she looks lovely!

 

[Mermaid1962]

I think that MC looks quite regal. Because she's so tall and broad-shouldered, she can wear pearls like this along with a tiara and look good. She appears to be giving a speech in one of the pictures. Given her position that evening, I think that it was appropriate to wear the jewelry that she did.

 

[NGalitzine]

Do you think the pearls and broochs are real or costume? She wore them in the same arrangement with a period costume for the reburial of Diane de Poitiers, along with sort sort of pearl drop thing on her head.

 

[Baroness of Books]

If those pearls are genuine, they are an amazing size. Also, those diamond bow brooches are astounding. I don't really like this combined look, but as separate pieces they're really magnificent.

 

[NGalitzine]

^^^^^
My guess would be costume jewellery.

 

[Elly C]

I very much like this combination - I think she carries off the large pieces well and agree this is in part due to her stature. I'm wondering how likely it is that she would wear costume jewellery when she is hosting a state banquet. ( When was the last time the Kents did this?) If they are not from her own collection, my guess would be that they are on loan.

 

[maria-olivia]

Or you are Diane de Poitiers or you are Princess of Kent but not both !

 

[expat]

President Of Turkey Abdullah Gul Speaks At The Guildhall In

Note M-C's pearls at the Guildhall yesterday at a reception for the visiting Turkish President

Did you say note? I think they almost popped out of the photograph and hit me in the eye.

 

[Katrianna]

The pearls strike me as costume while the brooches look real. The pearls are just too large to look real.

 

[Jahkoo]

Isnt the pearls in almost the same size as the necklaces she wore at the Royal wedding in London this summer?

 

[Al_bina]

As for the Guidhall appearance, heavy strands of pearls and diamond bows is so XV century. Princess Michael looked overwhelmed with jewellery. I for one prefer smaller finer pieces. It is impossible to determine whether or not pearl strands are real. Guessing is a futile exercise.

This time her arrangement jewelry was a disaster .. to much to mixed , daisies as tiara did not pass with her heavy dress. Her earrings were nice but I id not like her necklace.
What s Al Bina 's Opinion about PM ?.

The daisy tiara with an unkempt hairstyle is not a good combination.

 

[Diarist]

Its not often that M-C gets to host an event related to a State visit, so I guess this is her opportunity to play the part. She also does not have any royal orders, so she does have to find her own baubles to play dressing up.

Please could I help with a little information?

The Banquet was in fact NOT hosted by Princess Michael of Kent. It was hosted by the Lord Mayor and took place at the Guildhall in the City of London. This particular fact is quite interesting, in that the Lord Mayor is a very important person and at events held in City of London [which is an area of London - the commercial and financial centre of London] a different Order of Precedence applies in that he, the Lord Mayor, ranks immediately after the Queen. Thus, he easily outranks Prince and Princess Michael of Kent......... The Kents were present as guests only - PMK's position on the table is presumably in accordance with normal seating practice, not because she was hosting the event.

Looking at the necklace, it does indeed suggest 'costume jewellery' to me as well, NGalitzine. It has long been rumoured that Princess Michael of Kent has had replicas of jewellery that the Kents inherited made in paste etc. This speculation was started by the PMK's former private secretary John Barratt, who used to recount the story that a 'diamond' fell from one of PMK's tiaras and was then accidentally [in a way that a real diamond would NOT have] shattered by a third party's foot. According to John Barratt, Prince and Princess Michael sold a lot of gemstones and pearls from the jewellery that he inherited, and had them replaced by paste and artificial pearls etc. Whether the rumours are true or not is another matter. The reason Barratt gave for the various sales was that the impecunious couple needed to raise money and this was one way of doing so.......


Hope this helps,

Alex