Many exclusive ornaments of royal families have a rich history, and some of them are even associated with scandals. Let's find out the fate of some of them.
The stories of the royal families are shrouded in many secrets, many of which have not yet been revealed. Of particular value are relics that are passed from generation to generation and can tell a lot about the lives of their owners. Let's find out the fate of some royal jewelry.
1. The Ring of Diana
For her engagement, Princess Diana chose a sapphire ring made by the jeweler's house "Garard", which at the time cost £ 28 thousand. Queen Elizabeth II was outraged by this act, since usually the decorations of the royal family are only made to order and cost much more. After the tragic death of Diana, the ring inherited her son William, who presented him to the engagement of Kate Middleton.
2. Eggs of Faberge
In Russia, a tradition existed to paint eggs for Easter, and Tsar Alexander III came up with the idea of making his wife an unusual jewelry gift. At Gustav Faberge, he ordered an egg covered with white enamel, in which sat a small chicken, and in it was hidden an egg from ruby and the imperial crown. The Empress was delighted with the limit, and since that time her husband has presented such gifts to her at Easter every year.
The tradition after the death of his father was continued by his son, and eggs were already made for gift to the royal relatives and distinguished guests from other countries. During the October Revolution, the Bolsheviks sold some of the precious eggs for replenishment of the treasury, and only nine remained in Russia. Admire their beauty can be in the museum of Faberge.
3. Bracelets of the Danish princesses
Since the reign of Queen Ingrid in Denmark, an unusual tradition has arisen - all the princesses on their fifth birthday receive a gold bracelet. Here is the history of this tradition. After a short time, after Ingrid from her mother received such an expensive gift, the parent died. The girl was very sad for her mother, and the bracelet became very important for her, and she did not part with him. When Queen Ingrid was born a daughter, she repeated the act of her mother and gave her a gold bracelet for five years. Since then, the tradition has been entrenched in the Danish royal family.
4. The Tiara of Elizabeth II
On the day of her wedding, the present Queen of Great Britain received a beautiful diamond tiara as a gift, but right before the ceremony, a nuisance occurred - the hairdresser broke the jewelry. The queen was horrified, but there was no time to panic, the decoration was urgently sent to the jewelry house, where it was quickly repaired and handed back to the queen, who went to the tiara under the crown.
5. Tiara Keith Middleton
Married to Prince William Kate came out in a diamond tiara, which before her bore a huge number of people. The jewelry was bought by George VI, and then it passed into the possession of Elizabeth II. Tiara is adorned with exactly 888 diamonds, which are located in a special way: when they hit the light an unusual optical effect of the aureole over their heads is created. The queen never put on a tiara, but let her abuse other court ladies. As a result, in 2011, the decoration became a gift for Kate, who went to her under the crown.
6. The tiara of the Queen of Rania
The Queen of Jordan is a woman who changed the position of the "weak" sex in the Islamic world: she first appeared in public with an open face, got the right to vote, began to drive her own car and wear designer clothes. All this time she did not have her crown, which appeared only in 2000. The tiara was made by the jeweler house "Busheron" made of black gold and emeralds. Outwardly it looks like an ivy twig, so it was called "Emerald Ivy".
7. Necklace of Marie Antoinette
The incredible beauty of the necklace is distinguished by its fine workmanship and it is made of precious metal and diamonds. One scandalous story occurred in the 18th century. Approached to the queen, people without her knowledge bought this ornament for a lot of money (1.5 million livres), referring to the name of Marie Antoinette. As a result, scammers were discovered, but the role of the queen in this transaction remained "dark" and many people were confident that the fraudsters were acting on her orders. All this became the reason for the growth of discontent in the country, and eventually led to the sad end of the reign of the queen.
8. Crown of the British Empire
The most famous jewel of Britain was created in 1937 for King George VI. The crown weighs almost 1 kg, and this is understandable, because it is decorated with a huge amount of precious stones. The most expensive ornament of this regalia is located in the center - the diamond "Kohinur", whose name translates as "mountain of light". It was found in India more than 300 years ago, and for all this time passed from hand to hand only as a result of the conquest, it was never sold. To Queen Victoria, the diamond came in 1849.
When India became independent, the government demanded the return of the jewel, but the British authorities said it would not. Since that time, the diamond is in the royal family.
9. Sapphire Brooch of Victoria
Queen Victoria was known for her love of sapphire jewelry, and a few days before the wedding her future husband Prince Albert made her a gift - a sapphire brooch. The decoration was so beautiful that Victoria decided to put it on a solemn wedding.
According to the ancient tradition, there are four things that must necessarily be present on the woman who goes to the crown: something old, new, borrowed and blue. Sapphire brooch and took on the mission of the last object. Blue was chosen for a reason, because it is a symbol of loyalty and devotion.
Interestingly, since that time in the tradition of jewelry house "House of Garard" in the wedding rings puts a small sapphire. At the moment, the owner of the sapphire brooch is Queen Elizabeth II, who wears her solely for solemn events.