The tiara collection of Queen Elizabeth II is the stuff of legends—literally. From diadems inherited via her grandmother Queen Mary, who was an avid collector of jewels, to those she has been gifted throughout her reign, these are the notable tiaras in the late Queen Elizabeth’s ample collection.
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Pool / Anwar Hussein Collection / Getty Images1/11The Imperial State Crown
Traditionally worn by the queen to and from the State Opening of Parliament, this headpiece has been passed down to her through the generations, after it was originally made for King George IV’s coronation. Featuring almost 3,000 diamonds, 269 pearls, 17 sapphires, and 11 emeralds, it weighs 2.3 pounds and was reportedly too heavy for the 96-year-old monarch to wear near the end of her life. Instead, it is carried to and from the State Opening by the Lord Great Chamberlain, the Marquess of Cholmondeley.
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Mark Cuthbert / Toby Melville / Getty Images2/11The Grand Duchess Vladimir Tiara
Said to be one of the queen’s favorite headpieces, the Grand Duchess Vladimir Tiara has a thrilling history. It was originally made for the eponymous owner in 1874, who had it smuggled out of Russia during the revolution of 1917 by two British friends posing as servants. It was later bought at auction by the queen’s grandmother Queen Mary, who was a keen jewelry collector. The elegant looped diamond design allows for customization, with either pearls or emeralds attached.
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Chris Jackson / Getty Images3/11The Burmese Ruby Tiara
The Burmese Ruby Tiara was particularly close to the queen’s heart, as it was made using a wedding gift. In 1976 she approached the court jeweler Garrard to use the 98 rubies she had been gifted by the people of Myanmar (a Commonwealth country, formerly known as Burma) to make a new headpiece. The stones are thought to ward off evils and illnesses in Burmese culture, so it certainly raised some eyebrows when Her Majesty chose to wear it for former US president Donald Trump’s state visit.
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Fox Photos / Hulton Archive / Getty Images4/11Queen Mary’s Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara
Given to Queen Mary on her wedding day to King George V as a gift from her ladies-in-waiting, the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara is another headpiece that our queen inherited via her grandmother and is affectionately known within the family as “granny’s tiara.” It is thought to have been one of Her Majesty’s favorites, as she was often seen wearing it, and is even pictured wearing it on some bank notes. Its original pearls were removed and incorporated the Cambridge Lovers’ Knot Tiara.
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PA Images / Alamy Stock Photo5/11Queen Mary’s Fringe Tiara
Worn recently by Her Majesty’s granddaughter Princess Beatrice on her wedding day, Queen Mary’s Fringe Tiara holds particular sentimental value for the queen, as she had also been lent it by her grandmother Queen Mary when she married Prince Philip in 1947. Featuring 47 bars of diamonds, it famously snapped when the queen was getting ready for the wedding and had to be driven to Garrard to be fixed.
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Anwar Hussein / WireImage via Getty Images6/11The Cambridge Lovers’ Knot Tiara
Most closely associated with the Duchess of Cambridge and the late Diana, Princess of Wales, the Cambridge Lovers’ Knot Tiara was yet another that was commissioned by Queen Mary, using pearls from the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara. It was gifted to Diana upon her wedding to Charles in 1981, but she returned it to the queen after they were divorced. The pretty headpiece features 19 baroque pearls and rose-cut diamonds, which are set in heart-shaped knots.
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JONATHAN BRADY / AFP via Getty Images7/11Queen Mary’s Bandeau Tiara
Not seen in public for 60 years, Queen Mary’s Bandeau Tiara made a surprise comeback from the royal vaults in 2018, when the Duchess of Sussex chose it for her wedding-day tiara. It was originally commissioned in 1932 and was made using a diamond brooch that Queen Mary had received as a wedding gift from the County of Lincoln. The Art Deco style has a flexible band of 11 sections with a center brooch of 10 individual diamonds.
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Paul Hackett – WPA Pool / Getty Images8/11The Cartier Halo Tiara
On her 18th birthday, the queen received one of her mother’s most treasured possessions, the Cartier Halo Tiara. It had been commissioned by King George VI for his wife as a wedding anniversary present in 1936 and is made from 739 brilliant and 149 baton diamonds in a scroll pattern. It has never been worn in public by the queen, but she did lend it frequently to her sister Princess Margaret and her daughter Princess Anne. The Duchess of Cambridge borrowed it from the queen on her wedding day in 2011.
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Pool Photograph / Corbis / Corbis via Getty Images9/11The Delhi Durbar Tiara
Another tiara that the queen owned but never wore in public is the Delhi Durbar Tiara. It was commissioned by (you’ve guessed it ) Queen Mary in 1911 for the Delhi Durbar, a ceremonial gathering that celebrated the coronation of King George V and Queen Mary as Emperor and Empress of India. At the time, she wore it with emeralds attached, to match her cache of jewelry, but later she swapped them for the Cullinan III and IV diamonds—the most expensive jewels in the royal collection. It was most recently worn by the Duchess of Cornwall in 2005.
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Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images10/11The Brazilian Aquamarine Tiara
For her coronation in 1953, the queen was given a necklace and pair of earrings from the country of Brazil using some of its native aquamarine stones. Several years later, it added to the suite, sending her a large brooch and bracelet. Her Majesty clearly liked the gift, commissioning Garrard to create a matching tiara of diamonds and aquamarines that could be detached and worn as brooches too. It’s one of her “more is more” pieces, and she wore it (and adapted it) frequently and was last seen in it in 2011.
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Andrew Matthews – WPA Pool / Getty Images11/11Greville Emerald Kokoshnik Tiara
Never worn publicly by a member of the royal family until Princess Eugenie’s wedding day, the Greville Emerald Kokoshnik Tiara was the subject of intense rumor in 2018, when it was claimed that it was Meghan Markle’s first choice of bridal headpiece and that she had been refused. It was bequeathed to the Queen Mother by Dame Margaret Greville in 1942, having been made some 21 years earlier. Its design is inspired by the kokoshniks beloved by the tsars and tsarinas of Russia and features a dramatic central cabochon emerald.
This post was originally published on Tatler.
