In 1981, after a whirlwind courtship, Prince Charles introduced Diana Spencer with an array of engagement rings by the Home of Garrard. The 19-year-old royal bride-to-be took to a 12-carat Ceylon sapphire ring surrounded by 14 diamonds. Her “off the rack” alternative could have appalled sure members of the Agency however Princess Diana cherished her ring a lot she continued to put on it after her divorce.

Princess Diana’s engagement ring design was impressed by the Prince Albert Brooch, seen right here on Queen Elizabeth II throughout her go to to Saudi Arabia in 1979. The piece, which its namesake consort gifted to Queen Victoria on the eve of their wedding ceremony, was beloved by the monarch and is now an essential piece in her great-great-granddaughter’s assortment. Upon her demise in 1901, Queen Victoria designated the brooch an heirloom of the crown, that means it might be particularly reserved to be used by future queens and queen consorts.

Among the many many items Queen Elizabeth inherited from her grandmother Queen Mary (who died in 1953) is the Queen Mary Russian Brooch, which includes a square-cut diamond and sq. cabochon sapphire surrounded by spherical sensible diamonds that may be worn vertically or horizontally. The jewel was a present to then Princess Mary of Teck by Empress Marie Feodorovna of Russia in 1893.

When her mom died in 2002, Queen Elizabeth inherited a number of items of jewellery, together with this Sapphire and Diamond Grapes Brooch.

Olympic equestrian and retired British Military officer Mark Phillips proposed to Princess Anne in 1973 with a Garrard-designed ring that featured a sapphire stone flanked by two diamonds. Almost 20 years later, for her marriage to present husband Sir Timothy Laurence, a retired Royal Navy commander, Princess Anne obtained one other sapphire engagement ring, this time a cabochon sapphire with three diamonds on both sides.

Princess Diana, right here at a state reception in Australia in 1983, obtained a collection of sapphire jewels from the Saudi royal household as a marriage present, which included a really massive Burmese sapphire pendant set on a skinny diamond necklace and surrounded by baguette diamonds, matching earrings, a hoop (not pictured), a double-row diamond bracelet with a sapphire centerpiece, and a watch that includes seven sapphires (additionally not pictured).

In 2002, Queen Elizabeth attended a dinner at 10 Downing Road to have a good time her golden jubilee. She wore a tassel necklace, trefoil earrings, and bracelet. Whereas their provenance is unknown, they’ve been rumored to have been a present from Center Japanese royalty (one other related tassel necklace belonging to the queen, set in emeralds, is claimed to have come from Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates).

Queen Mary was well-known for her wholesome urge for food for jewellery. She commissioned what are actually the royal household’s most iconic tiaras, from the Diamond Fringe worn by Queen Elizabeth, Princess Anne, and Princess Beatrice on their wedding ceremony days to the Cambridge Lover’s Knot, a favourite of Princess Diana and now Kate Middleton. She additionally cherished to buy, particularly from the estates of Romanov royals (see: the legendary Vladimir Tiara and plenty of of Empress Marie Feodorovna’s sapphire items on this listing). The parure pictured right here, nonetheless, got here from throughout the household and was handed down from Queen Mary’s grandmother, Princess Augusta, Duchess of Cambridge. Queen Mary made changes to the jewels and later gifted the set to her daughter-in-law Princess Marina for her 1934 wedding ceremony to George, the Duke of Kent. It then went to their eldest son Edward, who needed to promote elements of the set for monetary causes.

The Russian Sapphire Cluster Brooch belonged to Empress Marie Feodorovna, who was married to Tsar Alexander III and whose sister Alexandra was the consort of King Edward VII. Although it bears a resemblance to the Prince Albert Brooch, this one options an intricate gold filigree element. Queen Mary bought the piece from the Empress’s property and it later entered into Queen Elizabeth’s assortment upon her demise in 1953. The Queen Mom, nonetheless, was mentioned to have adored the brooch and he or she wore it quite a few instances all through her life. Queen Elizabeth did not begin sporting the brooch till 2014, for a go to to the Vatican (pictured right here).

Princess Diana obtained an enormous sapphire brooch as a present from the Queen Mom and usual it right into a multi-strand pearl choker, which she wore on a number of events all through the ’90s—right here, she attends a London gala in 1995.

Throughout Queen Elizabeth’s tour of the Center East in 1979, the Sheikh of Dubai introduced her with a shocking assortment of sapphire jewels made by Asprey—a looped diamond and sapphire necklace, plus matching earrings and a hoop. Later, the monarch had the necklace shortened and used the excess sapphires to create a brand new set of earrings; she then refashioned the unique ring and earrings to make a bracelet. She wore the complete ensuing suite—with Queen Alexandra’s Kokoshnik Tiara—to a dinner in Canada in 2005.

For the opening of the Invictus Video games in Sydney in 2018, Meghan Markle wore a navy Stella McCartney cape gown, which she accessorized with a pair of delicate diamond and sapphire drop earrings.

Duchess Camilla reportedly obtained this sapphire and diamond necklace (a part of a parure) from the Saudi royal household as a marriage current.

Not all sapphires are blue: In 2018, Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank introduced their engagement with a pink padparadscha sapphire ring that appeared to have been impressed by her mom Sarah Ferguson’s Burmese ruby engagement ring.

For her annual Christmas deal with in 2013, Queen Elizabeth wore a symbolic brooch—the diamond, sapphire, and ruby encrusted jewel was a present from her mother and father to have a good time the beginning of Prince Charles in 1948.

Princess Michael of Kent‘s husband, Prince Michael, inherited this Cartier brooch—a pansy motif that includes sapphires, emeralds, and black pearls—from his mom, Princess Marina.

Right here, Princess Michael of Kent wears the Cartier pansy brooch as a part of a necklace.

The George VI Sapphires are undoubtedly amongst Queen Elizabeth’s most significant jewels. The demi-parure, which consists of a Victorian-era necklace and earrings, was a marriage present from her father in 1947. A couple of years later, the Queen refashioned the necklace, shortening it and eradicating the most important sapphire stone to show right into a pendant (as seen right here). Someday in the course of the ’60s, she additionally commissioned an identical bracelet to accompany the set.

The true origins of Queen Mary’s Sapphire Bandeau Tiara, seen right here on Princess Margaret in 1958 attending a state banquet with the Queen Mom (who appeared to have borrowed Queen Elizabeth’s George VI Demi-Parure for the event), are unknown. Some imagine it got here from the gathering of Empress Marie Feodorovna whereas others contend Queen Mary had it commissioned herself. Although this tiara, whose heart sapphire stone could possibly be eliminated and switched out for different gems, seems to be very very similar to the Queen Mary Diamond Bandeau Tiara that Meghan Markle borrowed for her 2018 wedding ceremony to Prince Harry, they don’t seem to be the identical piece. It is unclear what turned of the Sapphire Bandeau.

Camilla wore this massive floral sapphire and diamond pendant to a 2013 efficiency in London.

For a dinner in Hungary in 1990, Princess Diana accessorized her Catherine Walker robe along with her beloved sapphire and pearl choker.

Throughout Princess Diana’s 1986 go to to Oman, the Sultan gifted her a collection of crescent-shaped sapphire jewels, which she wore to a state banquet in Germany a yr later.

Because the story goes, when Princess Diana died it was Prince Harry who saved his mom’s sapphire ring, whereas Prince William selected her Cartier Tank Française watch. Finally the brothers swapped, and the remainder is historical past.

On the event of her sapphire jubilee in 2017, celebrating her sixty fifth yr on the British throne, Queen Elizabeth obtained this Sapphire Jubilee Snowflake Brooch from Canada. The jewel, which she wore to Ascot right here in 2019, is about with uncommon Canadian sapphires found in 2002 on Baffin Island.

Princess Diana refashioned the watch and ring from the Saudi Sapphire Suite and turned them right into a choker, which she wore with the Saudi earrings and the Spencer Tiara to a state dinner in Australia in 1985.

Princess Diana was keen on turning her chokers into headbands, as she did right here for a dinner with the emperor of Japan in 1986.

The precise provenance of Princess Anne’s sapphire brooch is not clear. Some imagine that when creating that aforementioned well-known brooch for Queen Victoria, Prince Albert made replicas for his or her daughters. Others imagine that just one copy was made for the queen herself. Both method, the piece discovered its solution to Queen Elizabeth’s solely daughter.

For her son Lord Frederick Windsor‘s wedding ceremony in 2009, Princess Michael of Kent wore a multi-strand pearl and sapphire necklace adorned with two removable Cartier sapphire and diamond clips, created by the maison in 1931 and later bought by the Duke of Kent for his spouse, Princess Marina. When she died, Marina left them to her youthful son, Prince Michael of Kent.

The Queen Mom’s brooch assortment was legendary. For her 88th birthday celebration at Clarence Home in 1988, she wore this diamond and sapphire brooch.

Empress Marie Feodorovna’s Sapphire Brooch was among the many many gadgets Queen Elizabeth inherited from her grandmother Queen Mary. The piece, a big cabochon sapphire surrounded by two rows of diamonds and adorned with a pearl drop, was initially a marriage current for the Russian Empress in 1866 from her brother, the Prince of Wales. Queen Mary later bought it from the dowager’s property in 1929.

Princess Diana on an official tour of Argentina in 1995.

For a go to to Scotland in 2019, Kate Middleton wore a pair of sapphire and diamond drop earrings that belonged to her mother-in-law Princess Diana. Prince William reportedly gifted them to his spouse after they received engaged in 2010.

Queen Elizabeth obtained this diamond and sapphire feather brooch as a marriage present in 1947 from the jewellery agency Carrington’s.

The Queen Mom is pictured right here in 1986 sporting her beloved Russian Sapphire Cluster Brooch with a pair of sapphire and diamond fringe earrings.

In 2015, the Duchess of Cambridge wore her great-grandmother-in-law’s sapphire and diamond fringe earrings for a gala on the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

Princess Anne’s sapphire, diamond, and pearl choker was one of many many items from Russian Empress Marie Feodorovna’s assortment that Queen Mary later bought. In 1953, Queen Elizabeth inherited the jewels from this cache, however as she hardly ever wears chokers, it’s believed she handed this all the way down to her daughter, both as a present or longtime mortgage. The necklace might be taken aside to turn out to be a pair of bracelets, whereas the centerpiece turns right into a brooch.

The Sapphire Chrysanthemum Brooch has been within the Queen’s assortment since her days as a princess and is a uncommon piece that predates her accession to the throne. She obtained it as a present in 1946 when she launched an oil tanker named the British Princess.