From Her Majesty's Jewel Vault: February 2013

Photo: BBC screencap

27 February 2013

Royal London Hospital

The Queen, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, opened the Royal London Hospital and the National Center for Bowel Research and Surgical Innovation.

Click above for video from ITN.

I'm never one to complain about purple or amethysts - but this outfit must have the least brooch variety of any in current rotation.

Amethyst Bouquet Brooch

Photos:ITN screencap/Bauer Griffin

26 February 2013

Archbishop of Canterbury's Homage

The Queen received the new Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Reverend Justin Welby, for an audience during which he 'did homage' as is tradition for new appointees. Her Majesty also received the Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island and the Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia for audiences.

I do love the sound of these old traditions. All in a day's work for the Supreme Governor of the Church of England.

Gold Lace Work Brooch

Photo: WPA Pool/Getty Images

21 February 2013

Audience at Buckingham Palace

The Queen received the High Commissioner of Australia at Buckingham Palace.

Audiences galore! She's scheduled to leave the house next week, it's very exciting.

Pearl Triangle Brooch

Photo:PA

20 February 2013

Audience at Buckingham Palace

The Queen received the High Commissioner of the Bahamas at Buckingham Palace.

It's really very cute, still wearing the brooch she got for Charles' birth, isn't it?

Flower Basket Brooch

Photo: PA/Bauer Griffin

19 February 2013

The Delhi Durbar Bracelet

The Delhi Durbar Bracelet

Another Cambridge emerald piece made for Queen Mary for the Delhi Durbar, likely by Garrard, the bracelet that goes with the Delhi Durbar Parure includes three of those emeralds plus diamonds, all set in platinum and gold.

Queen Mary

It was not the only bracelet Queen Mary wore with the Delhi Durbar Parure - there was an emerald bangle she was prone to, and a later Art Deco addition, to name two. But it is the one that is most consistently chosen to accompany the pieces since they passed to the Queen in 1953.

She usually wears an evening watch on one wrist, leaving one open for a bracelet to match the rest of what she's wearing.

And with that - we're done! There are other emerald jewels that may be switched in and out, but these are the core pieces of the Delhi Durbar Parure and those that use the Cambridge emeralds. They're all linked up below:

Click here to read more about the Cambridge emeralds and the Delhi Durbar Parure.

Appearances:
1988: State Visit to Spain
1961: Commonwealth Visit to India and Pakistan

Photos: Royal Collection/Corbis

Audiences at Buckingham Palace

The Queen received the Thai Ambassador and the Ambassador of the Republic of San Marino at Buckingham Palace.

The Grima...not my favorite, but you gotta appreciate the variety.

Grima Ruby Brooch

Photo: PA

18 February 2013

The Round Cambridge Emerald Brooch

The Round Cambridge Emerald Brooch

The fraternal twin brooch to the Scroll Cambridge Emerald Brooch is this one, with a round cabochon Cambridge emerald surrounded by rows of diamonds and another Cambridge emerald suspended as a pendant.

The Duchess of Teck

Unlike other Cambridge emerald jewels in the collection, this one wasn't crafted especially for the Delhi Durbar. The round cabochon emerald surrounded by two rows of diamonds and the pear-shaped emerald pendant were in use when the Duchess of Teck owned the Cambridge set. She used them as detachable pieces on a stomacher she'd bought from Garrard; the diamond stomacher (which was also used with sapphires, or no additional pieces) passed to her son Adolphus and was worn by his wife Princess Alice.

Queen Mary

The emeralds, as we know, ended up with Queen Mary, and she often pinned the brooch and pendant below the Delhi Durbar Stomacher. She also wore it on its own, which is how it has been used since the Queen inherited it in 1953.

The brooch without the pendant

The top portion can be worn without the pendant, but the Queen almost always wears the brooch with the pendant attached.

16 February 2013

The Delhi Durbar Stomacher and Scroll Cambridge Emerald Brooch

The Delhi Durbar Stomacher (left) and Scroll Cambridge Emerald Brooch (right)

Queen Mary loved a good stomacher, and the parure she created for the Delhi Durbar in 1911 wouldn't have been complete without one. There are seven of the gold-set cabochon Cambridge emeralds here and plenty of diamonds - including some of the chips from the famous Cullinan diamond. Two Cullinan brooches are used in the stomacher (and, obviously, can still be used on their own as well): the Cullinan V heart brooch, in the center of the top portion, and the Cullinan VIII emerald cut brooch. The Cullinan VIII is normally used with Cullinan VI suspended as a pendant, but in the Delhi Durbar stomacher it takes on the end emerald pendant instead.

Queen Mary with the stomacher

True to her pile-it-on tendencies, Mary sometimes wore other brooches as extensions of the stomacher. In her Delhi Durbar portrait (above, left), she pinned the Delhi Carved Emerald Brooch as a top piece; she also used a second Cambridge emerald brooch (the next topic in our series) as an addition to the bottom from time to time. Neither were integral to the design of the stomacher.

With the Scroll Cambridge Emerald Brooch alone (in the center of her bodice)

In addition to the Cullinan brooches stuck in the stomacher, the piece includes a removable emerald brooch. The Scroll Cambridge Emerald Brooch (as I like to call it) is created by combining the central cushion-shaped emerald in its scrolled diamond setting with the bottom emerald pendant.

Along with the rest of the emeralds, the stomacher and brooches passed to the Queen in 1953. She doesn't use stomachers much, but she uses the Scroll brooch occasionally (and, of course, the separate Cullinan brooches). The Scroll brooch has been used for day occasions but it's also used in the evening, to pin ribands in place when using the other emeralds in the collection (both those in the same parure, and those in others - on the right above, the Queen uses other emerald jewels including pieces from the Emerald Tassel Parure).

Click here to read more about the Cambridge emeralds and the Delhi Durbar Parure.

Appearances:
8 April 2014: State Visit from Ireland
1984: Royal Maundy Service
1980: Christmas Broadcast
1972: State Visit from the Netherlands

Photos: Royal Collection/Leslie Field/Corbis/Getty Images

15 February 2013

Audiences at Buckingham Palace

The Queen received the Ambassador of the Republic of South Sudan and the Ambassador of the Republic of Croatia at Buckingham Palace.

Looks like we have a return of the Cullinan V Brooch - it had a bit of a slim year in 2012 (it spent its summer vacation on display at the Palace), perhaps it will make a come back in 2013.

Cullinan V Brooch

Photo: AP

14 February 2013

The Art Deco Emerald Choker

The Art Deco Emerald Choker

This choker necklace is better known as the Cambridge Emerald Choker, since for years it was said to have been created by Queen Mary using more of her Cambridge emeralds. This was even the explanation posted at one point in time on the Royal Collection's site, but there's a new explanation in town now. The new description states that the emeralds were not the Cambridge emeralds, but a gift from the Ladies of India presented to Mary by the Maharanee of Patiala in December 1911. It seems there may have been confusion between this necklace and the Delhi Durbar Necklace in the past (the Delhi Durbar Necklace used to be referred to as the Ladies of India Necklace quite often, with the explanation that it had been presented by the Ladies of India; it has since been clarified that it was one of the pieces she had made for the Durbar ahead of time). I'd guess the recent research into the Queen's jewel collection for The Queen's Diamonds book and Jubilee exhibition has straightened a few things out.

Queen Mary, in the original version of the necklace and the revised version

The original gift of emeralds and diamonds from the Ladies of India was in the form of a slightly longer necklace worn by Queen Mary to the actual Delhi Durbar event. In 1921, she had Garrard redo the piece, creating an Art Deco style choker set in platinum. The new shorter necklace was perfect for Mary's signature layered jewel style, and she often paired it with the Delhi Durbar Necklace and multiple strands of diamonds.

Diana, Princess of Wales

The piece passed to the Queen in 1953, but she doesn't wear chokers often. So she loaned it to the Princess of Wales, who made it one of her signature jewels. Diana memorably wore it as a bandeau across her forehead, and wore it in necklace form both during and after her marriage. Since it was a lifetime loan, it returned to the Queen after Diana's death, and has since been exhibited at Buckingham Palace with other pieces of the Queen's jewelry. It hasn't been worn publicly by any member of the royal family since Diana, so the guessing game (when will it appear again, and who will wear it?) goes on.

Click here to read more about the Cambridge emeralds and the Delhi Durbar Parure.

Photos: Getty Images/Royal Collection

Audience at Buckingham Palace

The Queen received the High Commissioner for St. Lucia at Buckingham Palace.

She's really back to the grind this week, isn't she? Go on Lil, we missed ya during the Sandringham drought.

Frosted Sunflower Brooch

Queen Victoria's 11 Pearl Brooch

Photo: AP

13 February 2013

The Delhi Durbar Necklace

The Delhi Durbar Necklace

Containing 9 bright green cabochon Cambridge emeralds of varying shapes, 6 large brilliant diamonds, chains of diamond brilliants, and one Cullinan diamond pendant (Cullinan VII, a marquise-cut 8.8 carat diamond and one of the pieces cut from the celebrated Cullinan diamond), this was made in advance of the Delhi Durbar by Garrard and the cost was met by King George V as a present for Queen Mary's 44th birthday.

Queen Mary (left) and the current Queen (right)

Mary changed the Cullinan pendant on at least one occasion and also wore the necklace without its distinctive asymmetrical pendants. We've seen none of that since 1953, when the Queen inherited it - but it has been a favorite to pair with the emerald version of the Grand Duchess Vladimir Tiara. It hasn't been worn in a while, though, since the Queen started sticking to a primarily white evening wardrobe.

Click here to read more about this necklace at Order of Splendor.
Click here to read more about the Cambridge emeralds and the Delhi Durbar Parure.

Appearances:
27 November 2015: Visit to Malta, Day 2, CHOGM Dinner
8 April 2014: State Visit from Ireland
1988: State Visit to Spain
1987: CHOGM Dinner
1961: Commonwealth Visit to India and Pakistan
1955: State Opening of Parliament

Photos: EPA/Corbis

Investiture at Buckingham Palace

The Queen held an Investiture at Buckingham Palace.

Click above to see a video from ITV.

Oh, second sighting in a just a couple months for this one - you pearl lovers should be happy!

Photo: ITV screencap

12 February 2013

The Delhi Durbar Earrings

The Delhi Durbar Earrings

The earrings belonging to the Delhi Durbar Parure are a simple and classic style: oval cabochon emeralds surrounded by 11 brilliant diamonds each. One of the emeralds used is from Queen Mary's collection of Cambridge emeralds; the other was supplied to match by Garrard, who made these earrings for Mary for the Delhi Durbar.

Queen Mary

Many parures of this size have intricate and impressive earrings to accompany them, so it's interesting that these are so simple and relatively small. But this was typical for Queen Mary, who seemed to prefer a smaller earring without a pendant. (Probably best for balance when you're planning on wearing 5 necklaces at once, I suppose.)

They passed to the Queen in 1953. Unlike Queen Mary, who pretty much wore these exclusively with the rest of this emerald parure, the Queen has other emerald earring options to occasionally swap in.

Click here to read more about the Cambridge emeralds and the Delhi Durbar Parure.

Appearances:
27 November 2015: Visit to Malta, Day 2, CHOGM Dinner
8 April 2014: State Visit from Ireland
1988: State Visit to Spain
1961: Commonwealth Visit to India and Pakistan
1955: State Opening of Parliament

Photos: Royal Collection/Leslie Field/Corbis

Audiences at Buckingham Palace

The Queen received the Dutch Ambassador and the Ambassador of the Hellenic Republic at Buckingham Palace.

Looks like another appearance of the Tudor Rose Brooch - that's several appearances for a brooch that was new-to-us just last year, and now I'm really curious about its origins. (Also, that's a great suit for her!)

Tudor Rose Brooch