The Perth Bridge Opening Brooch

The Perth Bridge Opening Brooch

On October 10, 1960, The Queen opened the new Queen's Bridge in Perth, Scotland, and was presented with a brooch as a gift. The brooch is described in Leslie Field's The Queen's Jewels as "a miniature flower bouquet with seven amethyst buds surrounded by white and yellow gold ferns and grasses, with a central group of twelve freshwater mauve-tinted pearls from the River Tay."

Based on that description, the brooch has often been misidentified as the Amethyst Bouquet Brooch, which includes seven amethysts but does not otherwise match the description. The actual Perth Bridge Opening Brooch is instead the one pictured here.

The video above shows The Queen being presented with the brooch, and admiring it at length. This alternate footage displays the brooch.

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At the Windsor Horse Show, 1995 

The Perth Bridge Opening Brooch has only rarely been worn in public by The Queen. This is an intricate design, and the delicate sprays almost disappear, so it's not an easy identification. I suspect we haven't really seen it worn to its greatest effect.

Thanks to Franck for sending in information about this brooch!

Photos: National Library of Scotland screencaps, via Getty Images as indicated

The Duchess of Cornwall's Pearl and Diamond Prince of Wales Feathers Brooch

The Duchess of Cornwall's Pearl and Diamond Prince of Wales Feathers Brooch

The Duchess of Cornwall has a handful of jewels at her disposal that depict the triple feather heraldic badge of her husband, The Prince of Wales, and this brooch was an early addition to her collection. It's a small diamond rendition of the Prince of Wales' feathers stemming from a single gray pearl in a diamond surround. According to a feature in Hello! magazine, it was given to Camilla in the late 1990s and has been seen in public since at least 1999. The magazine wrote that the brooch was among a group of Prince of Wales feather pins Charles had made to give to close friends.

View image | gettyimages.com

The brooch's most significant appearance came when it was pinned to her Robinson Valentine coat for the couple's civil wedding ceremony at the Windsor Guildhall on April 9, 2005 - a subtle touch, but perfectly fitting for the occasion. It is one of the smaller brooch options from the section of her jewel collection that relates specifically to the Prince of Wales title, and she continues to wear it regularly.

Appearances:
11 June 2016: Trooping the Colour
7 June 2016: Visit to Wales 
19 May 2016: Buckingham Palace Garden Party
16 December 2015: Buckingham Palace Family Christmas Luncheon
2005: The Wedding of The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall  

Photos: via Getty Images

The Queen Mother's Pearl of the Dee Brooch

The Queen Mother's Pearl of the Dee Brooch

As a gift to mark her 100th birthday, the Salmon and Trout Association commissioned this brooch for Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother from goldsmith Rachel Jeffrey. The design is based on a salmon fly and it includes a blue gray pearl at the top, a body of solid 19 carat gold with a lattice work in sapphires, emeralds, and rubies, wings small touches of yellow and white diamonds, and a tail of 18 carat gold. It cost a reported £2500 to make, and the color scheme was a tip of the hat to the birthday girl's racing colors, according to the designer's site. Considering The Queen Mother loved to fish when in Scotland, I'm sure it made her smile. And it made a few other people smile too, with a limited edition production of 100 brooches that sold quickly.

Official engagement photo

I don't know if Queen Elizabeth had a chance to wear it publicly before she passed away, but it would get a significant debut a few years later, appearing in the engagement photo of Camilla Parker-Bowles and The Prince of Wales, which was taken at Birkhall (Queen Elizabeth's home on the Balmoral Estate, now used by the couple). The new Duchess of Cornwall would also wear the brooch for the first royal engagement after her wedding, in Scotland on the couple's honeymoon (shown below).

View image | gettyimages.com

Knowing what we know now, the appearance of this brooch and that engagement ring were huge tips to what Camilla's jewel future held. They were just the first of many pieces from The Queen Mother's collection that we would see on The Duchess of Cornwall.

View image | gettyimages.com

As for this brooch, it hasn't had many outings since these early ones. She has also worn it to the Braemar Gathering, so it seems the Scottish connection is strong. And there's another strong connection for The Duchess too: the designer set her business up with the help of a loan from The Prince's Trust, started by The Prince of Wales. (By the way, the Braemar appearance shown above seems to be the first time she wore it properly. The first two appearances? Worn upside down. Oops.)

Photos: Rachel Jeffrey, Clarence House, and via Getty Images

The New Zealand Blue Pearl Brooch

The New Zealand Blue Pearl Brooch

Monarchy New Zealand shared via Twitter a personal gift given by New Zealand Prime Minister John Key to the Queen during his September 2013 visit to Balmoral Castle: a brooch! From Eyris Pearls in Christchurch, the brooch includes a blue pearl surrounded by a design of mixed metal tones and what look to be marquise diamonds. The blue pearl makes an interesting addition to the brooch collection; I don't know that I've seen the Queen wear a blue pearl before, publicly at least. She already has at least one New Zealand-specific brooch, of course, the New Zealand Fern Brooch.

Appearances:
17 July 2014: Reading Railway Station Opening
28 October 2013: Commonwealth Nations Reception

Photo: @monarchynz