How Many Tiaras Does Queen Elizabeth II Own and Which Is the Most Expensive?
It’s no secret that Queen Elizabeth II has an impressive jewelry collection. Over the years royal fans have marveled at the dripping diamonds and shiny pieces members of the royal family wear. Some of the most glamorous are the tiaras.
We’ve seen not just the queen but also Princess Diana; Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge; and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex wear some exquisite headpieces. Here’s more about the queen’s many tiaras including which one is her favorite and which is the most expensive.
Queen Elizabeth owns dozens of tiaras
The queen has worn a number of tiaras during royal events and state visits.
She wore Queen Mary’s Fringe Tiara on her wedding day in 1947. The monarch has worn it a few other times as well including for a state banquet in Iceland in 1990. Princess Beatrice borrowed the tiara from her grandmother to wear when she married Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi on July 17, 2020. Royal fans may also be familiar with The Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara as the sovereign has worn that for her portrait on stamps.
Queen Elizabeth also has a tiara that is said to protect her from evil. She was seen wearing that Burmese Ruby and Diamond Tiara during a state banquet held at Buckingham Palace for U.S. President Donald Trump.
So just how many tiaras does she have in her collection? No one knows the exact number but it’s believed to be around four dozen.
Which is her favorite?
One of the royal family matriarch’s favorite tiaras is the Grand Duchess Vladimir Tiara. She’s worn it on several different occasions including the annual diplomatic reception in 2019.
The piece belonged to Russian royal Grand Duchess Vladimir. As the story goes, when the duchess had to flee Russia she left the tiara and other precious jewels behind. According to Town & County, a British officer was able to retrieve the jewels sometime later and gave them to her son, Grand Duke Boris, who had been living in London in exile.
Queen Mary purchased the tiara in 1921. It is made up of 15 diamond circles interlinked and can be worn multiple ways with hanging pearls, diamonds, or emeralds.
The priciest tiara was worn by Princess Eugenie on her wedding day
Of all the queen’s tiaras, one of the priciest was worn by Princess Eugenie on her wedding day. Queen Elizabeth’s granddaughter donned the Greville Emerald Kokoshnik Tiara when she married Jack Brooksbank on Oct. 12, 2018.
The stunning headpiece was created in 1919 by Boucheron for Queen Mary’s close friend, Margaret Greville, and later given to the Queen Mother. It features diamonds and emeralds set in platinum with a 93.7-carat oval-shaped emerald in the center.
“This piece is certainly exquisite; the center emerald has a wonderfully vivid color and large size, something which is rare to find these days,” gemologist and jewelry expert Deborah Papas told The Express. “With such strong historical provenance, from Mrs. Greville to the Queen Mother, and now the queen, an elegant jewel such as this would be estimated to fetch in the region of £5-10 million ($6 to $12 million USD) at auction.”
