Madagascar Royal Jewellery

[radama]

THE CORAL PARURE of the Queen of MADAGASCAR

Imageshack - 06part1collage1ranavalo

Hello , in this collage we can admire the finery of the last Queen of Madagascar including the impressive set of coral and the many more modest demi-parure with turquoises and other hair-pins. They are all exposed to the provisional Royal Museum here in Antananarivo capital of the island until the completion of the reconstruction of the Queen’s Palace in 2010. Every last rulers of Madagascar have resided in this palace.

Here are two photos of the Coral set belonging to Queen Ranavalona III (1861-1917): tiara (1) and full dress (2).
1 The Coral Tiara of the Queen RANAVALONA III of Madagascar :
http://img505.imageshack.us/img505/2623/adiadmeenoretpoiresdecoib2.jpg

2 A part of the last Queen of Madagascar’s Coral full dress :
http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/769/etlaparurecomplteenoretin8.jpg

It is a red coral full dress gold-mounted presented by France President in November 1886 including: a tiara, a large mirror necklace and a small one, a brooch, a bracelet and two pairs of earring pendants. We can see the mirror necklace exposed in the window to the right of the tiara on the bottom of the photo collage. The coral is not often used in other monarchies in the world but on our island, the coral is reserved for nobility and exclusively to the sovereign at royalty period.
Unfortunately, there‘s no pic of the Queen wearing this gem.
Here's a bigger picture of Queen :
Imageshack - 04queenranavalonaiiiofm

 

[Rene Brus]

Hi Radama,

I am very much interested to read that the coral parure is still preserved. Do you have a name and address of the museum curator? Or do you have any information if the different crowns of Madagascar are still preserved? Much thanks for any information.
Rene

 

[radama]

Hi Rene

I am very happy for your interest.
The Royal Museum is provisionally Andafiavaratra Palace named the Prime Minister Palace on the heights of Antananarivo, the capital of our island where I live.

Yes apart from the Coral parure, the lightweight crown of diamonds (“diadème de brillants”) on the last photo was also preserved from the fire in November 1995 but has not yet been exposed since this date. The existence of other gold crowns is random . I will post some photos of them later. But we‘ll be set at the reopening of the rehabilitated Royal Palace part of which will become the Museum.

[FONT=&quot]Radama and for all excuse for my bad English
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[MelinaB.]

The coral parure is really impressive! I would like to learn more about the jewels of the Royal house of Madagascar. To be honest with you, I didn't even know that Madagascar had a royal family.

 

[radama]

The coral parure is really impressive! I would like to learn more about the jewels of the Royal house of Madagascar. To be honest with you, I didn't even know that Madagascar had a royal family.

Yes many people ignore it till now and that's what it’s so wonderful with blogging on TheRoyalforums nowadays. The Kingdom of Madagascar has been recognized for the first time by a great power, Great Britain in 1817 although some principalities have escaped to the Kingdom of the Center.It ends in 1897 six months after the colonization of the Big Island by France. But let's go back to the Malagasy royal jewels now. Here's an array of the same pictures below :







1 The Coral Tiara of the Queen RANAVALONA III of Madagascar:



2 A part of the last Queen of Madagascar’s Coral full dress:


3 The Queen RANAVALONA III portraited by Trevor HADDON in London – Credit Photo : Rominia:


The picture of the Queen (3) with her light diamond tiara and the State Crown on her right is from a Trevor HADDON portrait made in London from photography.
It‘s described as a light diamond tiara topped with “brillants” and centered with an enamel “médaillon” of the royal arms. It is a private jewel purchased in Paris in early 1887 on her own cassette. She will bring it with her in exile in Algiers in 1899.

If she reigns today on our Great Island, Ranavalona III would surely be trimmed with diamonds but also multicolored fancy sapphires as the country abounds.
However the Queen was portrayed (4) with the massive gold state crown with seven spearheads (5) and the small gold crown decorated with lilies and royal insignia (6 - 7) the seven spareheads.
The state crown is yet now exposed at the Museum , it was made by Malagasy jewelers with the first kilogram of gold officially mined in the country inca.1890

4 The Queen RANAVALONA III of Madagascar (1861-1917) with the gold State Crown – “coloured” portrait:
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5 & 5a The massive gold state crown with 7 spearheads:[/FONT]
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6 RANAVALONA III with the small gold crown – Credit Photo : IMPA :
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7 The small gold crown– Credit Photo: Fonds Grandidier:
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[MelinaB.]

Great job, Radama! I liked these huge crowns, so regal! Keep them coming, please!

 

[radama]

Others pictures of the Queens' jewelery

Great job, Radama! I liked these huge crowns, so regal! Keep them coming, please!

Oh Yes I hope them so too !
Last Friday November 6, it was the 14th anniversary of the Queen’s Palace’s fire and I went up to it after then I switched to the nearly Prime Minister‘s Palace where I‘ve done some photos again :
Here are more close up fotos of the golden-mounted turquoise demi-parure including : a necklace , a brooch , earrings pendants (8) and also a pair of bracelets (9).

8 The turquoise demi parure of a non-identified Queen - 9 The turquoise pair of bracelets


All items are in pendants or “pampilles” style jewellery of the French Empress Eugenie, which suggests that she is who has gifted all the demi-parure to the Queen RASOHERINA (10) which died in 1868. It is more likely because the Emperor Napoleon III and the Empress Eugénie sent a golden tiara with acanthus leaf motif for the Queen and a splendid gold crown decorated with stones for the King RADAMA II (11) during their coronation on September 23, 1862. We observe that many items are lacking thus let appearing the gold frame.

10 The Queen RASOHERINA with her golden tiara (with acanthus leaf motif)
11 The King RADAMA II at her right his Golden Crown All Credit photos ROMINIA


[FONT=&quot]Now here‘s [/FONT]a close-up of the other red coral jewels: two necklaces, a brooch and the earring pendants (12). These are well preserved instead of the turquoises. In the collections’ catalogue they are described as follows:

- A first collar (the top one) in coral red flowers arranged in stylized, length = 12.01 inches
- The second necklace (bottom right) in pink coral with a copper clasp and at last
- The earrings pendants (bottom center), length = 2.36 inches.
​

12 The red coral jewels of the last Queen

 

[Rene Brus]

Dear Radama,
Only now, the 6th of December 2010, I noticed your kind reply to me in regard with my enquiries on the jewellery of Madagascar. I have no idea if you will read this reply of me soon, but I would be grateful if you can reply me directly through brus@crown-art.nl as I have some additional questions to ask. Thanks, Rene

 

[IloveCP]

The Coral tiara has got to be one of the strangest tiaras I have ever seen!

 

[radama]

The Coral tiara

Yes even so strange, the coral parure of the Queen of Madagascar depicts the traditions of the country :
Crowns often showed spearheads on the front side and coral was the appropriate material to the only sovereign .

Even though it was actually manufactured by a french jeweller.

 

[CyrilVladisla]

France restituted the Royal Crown of Queen Ranavalona III