Weekend Bonus: The Emerald Laurel Wreath Tiara

With the help of Francesca von Habsburg (born 1958), Austrian philanthropist Gery Keszler tries on the Emerald Laurel Wreath Tiara at the Vienna Philharmonic Ball in 2008

The Golden Cross Tiara

Photos (from left): Princess Brigitta Karadjordjević; Queen Maria of Yugoslavia; Queen Maria of Yugoslavia


When the body of Queen Maria of Yugoslavia was brought back to Serbia last month to be reinterred, her grandson, Crown Prince Alexander of Serbia, carefully placed this piece, her imposing golden cross tiara, atop his grandmother's flag-draped coffin. The gesture signals the importance

The Vladimir Cartier Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Princess Olga of Yugoslavia; tiara detail; Grand Duchess Elena Vladimirovna, Princess Nicholas of Greece and Denmark; Princess Olga of Yugoslavia


Time for another peek into the jewelry collection of Princess Olga of Yugoslavia. Olga wasn't only descended from the Greek royal family; like Mignon, the last Yugoslavian queen, Olga also had Russian heritage.

The Boucheron Daisies and Leaves Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): tiara detail; Princess Olga of Yugoslavia; Princess Barbara of Yugoslavia; Princess Olga of Yugoslavia


Today's tiara comes from one of the junior lines of the former Yugoslavian royal family. This is the floral tiara created by Boucheron that was once worn by Princess Olga of Yugoslavia, wife of Prince Paul (the cousin of King Alexander I).



Olga was born a

The Maria Alexandrovna Fringe Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Queen Maria of Yugoslavia; Queen Maria of Yugoslavia; Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha; Queen Marie of Romania; Princess Beatrice, the Duchess of Galliera


In the twentieth century, the Yugoslavian royal family depended on the Romanov heritage of Queen Maria ("Mignon") for much of their glitz and glamour. Just like yesterday's

The Yugoslavian Emerald Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): tiara detail; Queen Maria of Yugoslavia; Queen Maria of Yugoslavia; tiara detail; Queen Maria of Yugoslavia


Yesterday, a state funeral was held in Serbia for the late King Peter II, Queen Alexandra, Queen Maria, and Prince Andrej of Yugoslavia. All four had been forced to flee their country during the upheaval of the twentieth century; now, the remains of all

Weekend Bonus: The Ruby Olive Wreath Tiara

Princess Olga of Yugoslavia (1903-1997) wears the Ruby Olive Wreath Tiara with the other pieces (necklace, earrings, and brooch) of the Greek ruby parure

Weekend Bonus: The Danish Emerald Parure Tiara

Queen Ingrid of Denmark (1910-2000) wears the Danish Emerald Parure Tiara along with the earrings, necklace and brooch from the same parure

The Angoulême Emerald Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): tiara detail; Princess Marie Thérèse, Duchess of Angoulême; tiara detail; tiara detail


There are tiaras, and then there are tiaras that belonged to the daughter of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. Let's wrap up the week with a look at the emerald tiara that their eldest daughter, the Duchess of Angoulême, wore, shall we? Buckle up, readers -- this is quite the

The Henckel von Donnersmarck Emerald Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): tiara shown with model; Katharina Henckel von Donnersmarck; tiara detail; tiara detail

When you're the wife of one of the richest men in the world, it only seems fair that you should be given a truly remarkable tiara. But I'll bet even Katharina Henckel von Donnersmarck never predicted that her emerald and diamond tiara would one day be the most expensive

The Flame Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): tiara detail; Princess Shams of Iran; tiara detail; tiara detail; tiara detail


When the last shah of Iran was crowned as the country's emperor in 1967, the ladies of the imperial family went on a tiara shopping spree. One of the tiaras commissioned especially for the occasion was this emerald and diamond piece, the tiara of Princess Shams.



Shams, who was

The Norwegian Emerald Parure Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Princess Ingeborg of Sweden; Queen Sonja of Norway; Crown Princess Märtha of Norway; Queen Sofia of Sweden; tiara detail

The tiara that belongs to the Norwegian royal family's emerald parure is a pretty divisive one -- either you love the piece, with its geometric emeralds, or you don't. It's also a tiara about which much has been incorrectly written,

The Boucheron Black Emerald Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Queen Rania of Jordan; tiara detail; tiara detail; Queen Rania of Jordan


Let's start this week of tiaras with something a bit different, shall we? One of the most unusual tiaras ever to grace a royal head has to be this Boucheron piece, worn by the always-lovely Queen Rania of Jordan back in 2003.


The very modern tiara gets its unique look from the metal

Weekend Bonus: The Belgian Scroll Tiara

Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte of Luxembourg (1927-2005) wears the Belgian Scroll Tiara at her wedding to Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg (born 1921) in 1953

Weekend Bonus: The Queen Alexandra Kokoshnik Tiara

Queen Mary of the United Kingdom (1867-1953) wears the Queen Alexandra Kokoshnik Tiara; her necklace is Queen Alexandra's collier résille.

The Delhi Durbar Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Queen Mary of the United Kingdom; Queen Mary of the United Kingdom; Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother; tiara detail; the Duchess of Cornwall


Let's wrap up our week of May's tiaras with a look at the crowning achievement of her impressive collection: the tiara she had created for the Delhi Durbar in 1911.



The durbar was a massive celebration held in Delhi to

The Boucheron Loop Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Queen Mary of the United Kingdom; Queen Mary of the United Kingdom; Queen Mary of the United Kingdom; tiara detail


If you're a fan of frills, loops, and maybe roller coasters, I have found the tiara for you: the diamond loop tiara made by Boucheron for Queen Mary. Have you ever seen a loop tiara quite this tall?



The tiara was made in 1902 after DeBeers,

The Queen Mary Fringe Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom; Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom; Queen Mary of the United Kingdom; Princess Anne, the Princess Royal; tiara detail


Unlike many royal families, the Brits don't really have one dedicated tiara in their arsenal meant for brides. The closest the family has to a wedding tiara is this piece: the fringe tiara that

The Queen Mary Amethyst Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Queen Mary of the United Kingdom; tiara detail; tiara detail


Queen Elizabeth II of the UK has a massive jewel collection, with tiaras featuring all sorts of precious stones. But one notable stone lacking from the queen's tiaras is the amethyst. That wasn't always the case, though; once upon a time the Windsors did have amethyst tiaras, including this

The Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Queen Mary of the United Kingdom; Queen Mary of the United Kingdom; Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom; tiara detail


Classic, balanced, and chock-full of diamonds, the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara makes a lot of tiara lovers' "best of" lists. It has an impressive royal pedigree behind the beautiful craftsmanship, too.



The tiara was made

Weekend Bonus: The Danish Ruby Parure Tiara

Crown Princess Mary of Denmark (born 1972) wears the Danish Ruby Parure Tiara (before recent alterations were made) along with other pieces from the parure

Weekend Bonus: The Greek Emerald Parure Tiara

Queen Anne-Marie of Greece (born 1946) wears the Greek Emerald Parure Tiara

The Strathmore Rose Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother; Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother; Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother; tiara detail


One of the more unusual floral tiaras in any royal collection, the Queen Mother's Strathmore Rose Tiara is a piece that remains in the Windsor vaults but hasn't been seen in public in years. Part of the reason for the tiara's disappearing act may

The Floral Birthday Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Princess Benedikte of Denmark, Princess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg; Princess Alexandra of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, Countess of Pfeil and Klein-Ellguth; Princess Benedikte of Denmark, Princess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg; Princess Benedikte of Denmark, Princess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg; Princess Alexandra of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, Countess

The Antique Corsage Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Princess Marie-Chantal of Greece and Denmark; Princess Tatiana of Greece and Denmark; Princess Theodora of Greece and Denmark; necklace detail; Queen Anne-Marie of Greece; tiara detail


We've already had a look at one of the eighteenth-birthday tiaras given to the daughters of King Frederik IX and Queen Ingrid of Denmark (that would be the Alexandrine Diamond

The Spanish Floral Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): tiara detail; Infanta Cristina, Duchess of Palma de Mallorca; Queen Sofia of Spain; the Princess of Asturias


The Dutch royals aren't the only reigning family with a significant collection of jewels sourced from the house of Mellerio dits Meller -- the Bourbons also have some major Mellerio tiaras. This piece, the family's floral tiara, is frequently

The Hanoverian Floral Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Princess Caroline of Monaco, Princess of Hanover; Chantal, Princess of Hanover; Princess Caroline of Monaco, Princess of Hanover; Chantal, Princess of Hanover


A hundred years ago, it was still commonplace for royals to marry members of other royal houses; these days, not so much. One of the rare recent examples of a royal marrying another royal, however, is

Weekend Bonus: The Mellerio Sapphire Tiara

Queen Máxima of the Netherlands (born 1971) wears the Mellerio Sapphire Tiara at the inauguration of her husband, King Willem-Alexander. The brooch she wears is also a part of the Mellerio Sapphire parure; her sapphire earrings, which belong to Princess Margriet, were made from the tiara given to Queen Wilhelmina in 1901 as a wedding gift by the Dutch people

Weekend Bonus: The Württemberg Ornate Pearl Tiara

Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands (born 1938) wears the Württemberg Ornate Pearl Tiara on the eve of her abdication. As an extra bonus, Queen Máxima of the Netherlands (born 1971) wears the Dutch Diamond Bandeau Tiara. Máxima's diamond earrings include two diamond drops taken from the Stuart parure's brooch (seen here last weekend); her diamond necklace includes a large central diamond

The Stuart Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Queen Juliana of the Netherlands; Queen Juliana of the Netherlands; Queen Juliana of the Netherlands; tiara (and Stuart diamond) detail


I couldn't think of a better way to wrap up a super-sized week of Dutch sparklers than with the sparkliest Dutch tiara of them all: the Stuart tiara. This whopper of a diadem includes one of the rarest and most historic

The Dutch Emerald Parure Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Queen Máxima of the Netherlands; tiara detail; Princess Annemarie of Bourbon-Parma, Duchess of Parma (with the second pearl setting); Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands; Queen Juliana of the Netherlands


Another Dutch tiara that can be worn in more than one configuration is the tiara from the family's emerald parure. And, in an unusual twist, the second

The Württemberg Ornate Pearl Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): tiara detail; Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands; Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands; Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands; Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands


One of the fanciest tiaras in the entire Dutch collection is the Württemberg Ornate Pearl Tiara. It makes sense, then, that so far this tiara (unlike most of the other Dutch sparklers) has only been

The Dutch Festoon Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands (with necklace); Princess Margriet of the Netherlands; Queen  Máxima of the Netherlands; tiara detail


Often when a tiara can also be converted into a necklace, bracelet, or series of brooches, the piece starts first as a tiara. This Dutch tiara, the Festoon, went the other way around: it began as a necklace and was later

The Mellerio Sapphire Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Princess Mabel of Orange-Nassau (with the second, all-diamond setting); Queen Juliana of the Netherlands; Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands; tiara detail; Queen Juliana of the Netherlands


The second tiara that Mellerio made for the Dutch royals is a part of their sapphire parure. Hold onto your hats, readers -- this is a tiara that has two settings, and