We’re getting down to the nitty gritty now and to some of the tiaras that haven’t been seen in decades and decades. Today, I’m just going to break your heart right out of the gate. This tiara exists no more. Sadly, the Ladies of England Tiara was broken up over 100 years ago and some of its diamonds used to create the Cambridge Lover’s Knot and the Honeysuckle Tiaras. But…. that won’t stop me from drooling over the photos of it.
The Ladies tiara was a gift to Queen Mary (back when she was simply Mary of Teck) on the occasion of her wedding in 1893. It was designed and created by Hunt and Roskell at the request of a large group of ladies from…. you guessed it: England. Meant to be an all purpose tiara, it definitely lived up to its design.
The pearl and diamond tiara could be worn in the traditional sense (as a tiara) but also as a necklace (see the photo above) or used to adorn clothing, just as it was along the neckline of Mary’s dress in the photo below, as she and the Duke attended a costume ball to honor Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee in 1897.
The festooned design with the taller central motif had been in Mary’s favor for many years (she wore it often) but maybe she tired of it or perhaps it was just that she wanted something new, and so it was dismantled in 1913 and many of the stones recycled for the two aforementioned tiaras.
If it were around today, who would it best suit? Do you think the current Queen would wear it or would it have been passed down to others? I’m curious – share your thoughts with me in the comments.
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11 Responses
This tiara still exists and our current Queen has been painted wearing it as a necklace.
Jack:
You may be thinking of the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara, which is still in existence and in which the current monarch has been photographed/painted. But the Ladies of England tiara was dismantled by Mary to make the Cambridge Lover’s Knot Tiara.
Only Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the 2nd could pull up that off, I think, depending on its weight, I think it could have been one of her favorites!
Only Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the 2nd could pull up that off! I think depending on its weight, I think it could have been one of her favorites!
I’m wondering if it would have been too small for her head. But I definitely could have seen her wear it as a necklace!
I don’t think it would suit the Queen (to small) but it would look nice on Kate or Megan.
I could certainly get behind that!
Well at 20 years it lasted quite well for something Mary owned❤️
That was my thinking too. Twenty years was a long time for her to leave a piece of jewelry untouched.
Does she have a history of dismantling jewels?
Oh yes, she was known for it.