Sophie, Countess Of Wessex Jewellery

[sydney00]

please tell me, which necklace you can turn into a tiara? i never heard of that.
thanks

[HMQueenElizabethII]

Originally Posted by sydney00

please tell me, which necklace you can turn into a tiara? i never heard of that.
thanks

I think shy andy wants to mention about the tiara which the Countess wore at the enthronement gala of Prince Albert II in November 2005. The Countess then charmed us when turning the tiara into a necklace at a Banquet in March 2006 when she attended along with Prince Albert II as well.

[magnik]

Queen Mary Diamond Tiara | Diamant Tiara

2005 National Day / Enthronement ceremonies

[HRH Kimetha]

Originally Posted by magnik

Queen Mary Diamond Tiara | Diamant Tiara

2005 National Day / Enthronement ceremonies

So, did the Queen or Prince Edward give her the diamond tiara? Or, is there someplace within the royal household where all the jewlry is stashed that is checked out much like a "library book"? (not meaning, of course, to imply the jewlry as such that sits on the shelf collecting dust.)

[Warren]

Originally Posted by HRH Kimetha

So, did the Queen or Prince Edward give her the diamond tiara?

Like all three of Sophie's tiara's, very little is known. The provenance of her wedding tiara has been worked out; the second (bandeau) is purely supposition; and the most recent ("Monaco") is anyone's guess.

[bertie5252003]

It is all quite a mystery but I too love all three she is very lowkey when it comes to her jewels but I like the way she surprises every now and again as in Monaco. I did think her whole appearence that evening was so gracious and the tiara was as has been said just the icing on the cake so to speak.

[Prince of Chota]

It is interesting the way the one website displays the (new) tiara alongside a bandeau of Queen Mary's. Is there some relationship between the two pieces that I am just missing?

[ayvee]

Originally Posted by Prince of Chota

It is interesting the way the one website displays the (new) tiara alongside a bandeau of Queen Mary's. Is there some relationship between the two pieces that I am just missing?

Ursula's site (according to Ursula when she posted at the Royals Jewels of the World Message Board) is just showing the very similar types of tiaras with a nice centrepiece/stone in the middle. The Countess of Wessex's tiara is not the same as Queen Mary's.

-Ayvee

[Warren]

My take was that since Ursula (like us) has no idea of the provenance of the newest tiara, she added the backshots of some of Queen Mary's bandeau tiaras purely as "something extra". I too initially wondered if she was inferring a connection, but there is none.

[muriel]

I think the tiara´s given to Sophie are probably new and are not from any royal collections. This is probably because the Queen would probably be keen to keep the Royal collection largely for the POW and William (ie the future monarchs) so that the core collection always remains with the ongoing monarchs. As history has told us, successive generations of minor royals often end up selling the jewellery to raise money (e.g. Margaret's children selling the Poltimore tiara).

HM has shown quite a lot of restraint in sharing the royal jewels with her children for precisely this reason. Sarah was given a new tiara, Sophie does not have very much jewellery with great history, and Anne has received smaller pieces from Prince Philip's mother and others from the Queen Mother. Despite her position in the BRF, Diana only received a limited selection, as her marriage was never viewed as being stable. The only exception is Camilla, and the bulk of the jewels she has received have been closely associated with the Queen Mother - probably on Charles´' insistence!

[jcbcode99]

I believe that Sophie's wedding tiara is composed of pieces of Queen Victoria's regal circlet (or something like that). Sounds pretty royal to me.

[Warren]

Originally Posted by jcbcode99

I believe that Sophie's wedding tiara is composed of pieces of Queen Victoria's regal circlet (or something like that). Sounds pretty royal to me.

Yes, Sophie's wedding tiara is made from the four anthemions which were detachable ornaments that could be inserted into the frame base between the crosses and fleur de lys of the Regal Circlet. Impeccable provenance!

There is/was a fifth anthemion of larger size which acted as a mount for the Koh-i-noor diamond and could be inserted into the circlet, or worn as a rather impressive (!!) brooch.

[andrew]

Hi,

If you take a closer look to the necklace and earring worn by Sophie at the wedding in Denmark(in the church), the pattern of these look very similar(IMO) to the pattern of the tiara. So I think they were purchased together, probably by the queen as a wedding gift. It seems logical to me, because if the queen had purchased a demi-parure+tiara to Sarah why wouldn't have done the same with Sophie?

http://i203.photobucket.com/albums/a...F15-716532.jpg

[ayvee]

Originally Posted by andrew

Hi,

If you take a closer look to the necklace and earring worn by Sophie at the wedding in Denmark(in the church), the pattern of these look very similar(IMO) to the pattern of the tiara. So I think they were purchased together, probably by the queen as a wedding gift. It seems logical to me, because if the queen had purchased a demi-parure+tiara to Sarah why wouldn't have done the same with Sophie?

http://i203.photobucket.com/albums/aa4/andrewcs/DWF15-716532.jpg

The earrings and necklace are from Garrard's (Garrard. Established London 1735. Purveyors of Luxury Jewellery) from their Crown Collection. The necklace and earrings were on loan to Sophie for the Danish wedding. This info is from a response to my inquiry about the price of the necklace in 2005, after seeing a picture of Sarah, Duchess of York wearing the same necklace at an event. The necklace was loaned to Sarah as well.
http://i107.photobucket.com/albums/m...rdnecklace.jpg

Also, this particular design is by Jade Jagger (the necklace is featured in this article)
TIME Magazine | Fashion Issue Fall/Winter 2002/3
who joined Garrard's after the Sophie and Edward were married.

So Sophie's earrings and necklace were definitely not a wedding present from the Queen.

-Ayvee

[andrew]

If it is that way, then what was the Queen's wedding present?

[ayvee]

Originally Posted by andrew

If it is that way, then what was the Queen's wedding present?

Sophie's wedding tiara was a present from the Queen. Whether Sophie owns it outright or whether it's a lifetime loan is something we don't know.

As for Sarah's wedding tiara, I have read on some posts on this board that her tiara was purchased by Sarah's family. Her wedding present from the Queen was the diamond flower necklace and matching earrings.

-Ayvee

[branchg]

The tiara was a wedding gift from The Queen and was designed by Garrard's using Victoria's pieces.

[Prince of Chota]

I've heard that from several sources as well. The wedding piece is clearly created from an older piece, so this story seems to fit well. I would doubt that it is a brand-new piece that might have been purchased rather than created as a wedding present from jewellery already in the RF.