Royal Jewels

[IrishBreakfast]

Holy cow what a thread this is! I could spend all day going through all the eye candy!

 

[jewelerman]

I HAVE SPENT ALL DAY READING THIS THREAD!wHEN I FIRST FOUND THE SITE!GOOD STUFF.

 

[LadyMaria]

I am a newby around here...just got my account set up. This thread is beyond amazing!! I am an 8th grade science teacher and I had to wait around school yesterday for 3 hours while the principal was walking around signing teachers out for the year. I spent the whole time on this site. I couldn''t wait to sign up!!

 

[LadyMaria]

Earlier in this thread there were some pictures of "Princess" Mabel. She is the wife of Prince Johan Friso of the Netherlands. She is a sister-in-law to Princess Maxima. Mabel is the one who wore that horrific wedding dress with bows all over place *shudder* and her other clothes choices are hideous at best *shudder shudder.* LadyA made the reference to Mabel dating a drug lord and lying about it causing Johan Friso to surrender his place in the line of succession. Here is a link that does a fabulous job of telling the whole story. I was never crazy about Mabel either, and this really cinched it for me.

http://www.etoile.co.uk/Columns/PandorasBox/041102.html

 

[LadyMaria]

There have been some questions about the whole “orders” thing. I have a great book on Windsor Castle that my mom found at a garage sale. It has quite a bit of information about the Order of the Garter.

Edward III founded the Order of the Garter in 1348. One story says that a lady dropped her garter at some function and others began to laugh at her. Edward picked it up and wore it on his arm saying what has now become the motto of the order, “Honi soit qui mal y pense” which translated means “Shame upon him who thinks evil upon it.”

Others say that this story is just an old wives’ tale, that something as important as the Order of the Garter (it is the highest order of chivalry in Great Britain) would never have such a nonsensical beginning. Those say the “garter” refers to pieces that would hold on armor in medieval times.

Originally there were never more than 24 Knights Companion, as male members of the order are known. The monarch is the head with the heir to the throne as the assistant, and it was always assumed that male children of the monarch would also be Knights Companion. But it quickly became obvious that with all the sons monarchs had, and the sons of their sons, that the 24 would fill up fast. The “Supernumerary” category was then created for Knights Companion who were members of the royal family. Supernumerary members no longer count towards the 24. Supernumerary members also include many foreign heads of state. The original 24 are reserved for people who have done great things for Great Britian and are given at QEII''s discretion.

Women were not allowed to be Knights Companion in their own right unless it was the monarch. If a woman was married to a Knight Companion she could call herself “Lady” (insert last name). In 1987, QEII made it possible for women to be full Knights Companion and they are now called Ladies Companion of the Garter. When you see the letters “KG” or “LG” after someone’s name, that stands for Knights Companion of the Garter or Lady Companion of the Garter.

As for members of the royal family becoming KG or LG, it is certainly not a given. They still have to earn it. Prince Charles got his in 1958, as the heir and monarch are the heads of the order. The Princess Royal (Anne) didn’t become an LG until 1994. Andrew and Edward didn’t become KG until 2006. William just got his this year.

Every June there is a big ceremony at Windsor Castle where all the KG and LG wear the big robes and have a service at St. George’s Chapel. New KG or LG are invested at this time. There is also a special “Garter Throne Room” at Windsor Castle where the annual business of the KG and LG are conducted. Its walls are hung with portraits of monarchs in the Garter robes.

I’ll post more on the robes later, if anyone wants to hear more.

 

[Skippy123]

Date: 5/17/2008 9:07:13 PM
Author: LadyAmythyst69
Hey everyone!

I just wanted to let you all know I haven't disappeared totally. My Mom had a recurrence of breast cancer and had to have a mastectomy and is undergoing chemo right now. She is doing really well! But as you can imagine, it got rather busy and frantic around here for awhile. I promise I will get back to posting soon!! For now I just wanted to let you guys all know that I hadn't forgotten about the Royal Jewels.

Someone thoughtfully emailed me to check on me. I don't know who it was but thanks for thinking of me!

Oh gosh LadyAmythyst, prayers and strength for you and your dear mom during this time.

Good news on her doing well and continued prayers for her.

 

[marcy]

LadyA, I am so sorry to hear about your Mom. My best wishes and good luck to her. Take care.

 

[surfgirl]

I was passing through London this weekend and I picked up the latest HELLO magazine and let me tell you, it was like Royal Order ****! Unbelievable photos of a royal wedding and close ups of all the bling the guests were wearing, and an awful lot of Royal Order bling close up and personal! Yahoo...If anyone is so inclined to check out whether or not these photos are on the Hello website, might be interesting...

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Date: 6/6/2008 10:11:38 AM
Author: LadyMaria
Earlier in this thread there were some pictures of ''Princess'' Mabel. She is the wife of Prince Johan Friso of the Netherlands. She is a sister-in-law to Princess Maxima. Mabel is the one who wore that horrific wedding dress with bows all over place *shudder* and her other clothes choices are hideous at best *shudder shudder.* LadyA made the reference to Mabel dating a drug lord and lying about it causing Johan Friso to surrender his place in the line of succession. Here is a link that does a fabulous job of telling the whole story. I was never crazy about Mabel either, and this really cinched it for me.

http://www.etoile.co.uk/Columns/PandorasBox/041102.html

Welcome to PS, MJ!!! I am a teacher, too, and thankfully out for the summer! Hope you enjoy spending time here!

 

[minicat]

Date: 10/15/2007 6:30:10 PM
Author: Gypsy

Date: 10/15/2007 6:24:40 PM
Author: LadyAmythyst69
The third Spencer Tiara formerly belonged to Marie Antoinette. It is pictured here with the Sutherland necklace. (The Sutherlands are a branch of the Spencer family who are also associated with the Churchill''s and the Dukes of Marlborough. Thery''re all the same family.) The Sutherland necklace is comprised of 17 of the largest diamonds from a necklace that was owned by Marie Antoinette AND is the necklace that helped spark the French Revolution.

Oh yeah baby! That''s why I''m talking about, keep''em coming if you''ve got them LadyA, this is one fabulous thread! (The second Spencer tiara is really ugly... it definitely looked better before it''s present incarnation ). Any other pics of the Sutherland necklace? That necklace looks amazing. Ironic that it helped start a war in which the most famous cause of death, including the Queen''s, was decapitation.

Hi PS,
i was just looking a bit at ramdom and found this thread and love it. i love the history behind famous jewllery, often more than the jewles themselves.

well, while i have been looking for diamonds there has been LOTS of assurances here and there about conflict stones. which obviously is a good thing. nobody wants people to suffer human rights violations for ANY reason, least of all diamonds.

but i wonder why we all think differently of famous gems that we know for sure that full blown wars have been fought over in some way or another?

however, to play the devils advocate, i wonder how different banning ''conflict'' (i have used '''' because i am ignorant as to how we decide if they are conflict or not...ie precisely how its done) stones from the open market, therefore cutting off much needed funds to extremely poor people (yes, most goes on weapons or whatever, but it does bring SOME funds to the area (and at the risk of sounding even more non-PC) which is atleast more peaceful when a power structure is in place). how different is this from globally banning child labour...a very good idea, i agree...but these children have to eat too! and most of the time nobody there can afford to feed them, so they HAVE to work.

i know its a bit of a weird, politically incorrect post. but i think it is worth asking what people think about the difference between historic jewles that people have died because of, and modern everyday jewles that peole have died because of. i assume its because we have the power to change what is happening now (though, i think its probably better to talk with the ''bad guys''...i always do...like in war...you can either talk first and not have a war, or have a war and talk after...but you gotta talk!!!) and this is our support for the programes that are in place to make that change.

but maybe because its because the historic wars happened long ago and no one is around to remember them....because at the end of the day, these wars etc are not just historical facts to most of us...they are interesting. which when you really think about it, is repugnant.

i hope i havent offended anyone...but it is a topic that id really like to know what others opinions are.

minicat

 

[Imdanny]

How is this on topic? I open this thread to see and read about Royal Jewels!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Minicat, I''d suggest making your question a new topic. This thread is really for posting and learning about Royal Jewels. I, for one, know absolutely nothing about the details of the mining of Royal Jewels. So I certainly couldn''t add anything to a discussion. And I don''t think this thread is the right place for the discussion.

 

[surfgirl]

Date: 6/18/2008 5:11:38 AM
Author: Imdanny
How is this on topic? I open this thread to see and read about Royal Jewels!

If you read her comment, it was indeed related to Royal Jewels and their historical merit versus their provenance, be it tainted or not....

In any case, maybe it would be a better one thread debate, but it''s an interesting question nonetheless. Glad you brought it up mini!

 

[ohiogirl461]

Hi everybody,
I just found this web-site and am new here. I think this is an amazing thread. It''s full of wonderful pieces and interesting history. Thanks so much for starting this. It is most entertaining.

 

[minicat]

Sorry guys, i didnt mean to be ''off topic''... just thought it did kinda link in with royal jewels.

im not looking to debate it though... just was wondered what others thought. nevermind

lovely pics guys....i really like this thread. its nice to read bits about the jewellery too.

btw...i hope its not off topic again...i was wondering if there are any diamonds still worn by royals that were cut a long long time ago by lopping off a piece with another diamond, and what do they look like? i just wonder, because one of the first few pics here has a stone that belonged to HRH Elizabeth and it looks very dark...though i assume this would have been one of the finist pieces of the day.

and if it off topic, just ignore me....im slowly getting the hang of the dos and donts here!!

 

[coatimundi_org]

LadyAmy--sending well wishes to your mother. I''m glad she''s doing better. Hope you are okay!

 

[surfgirl]

mini, I''m not sure what you mean by "lopping off from another stone.."??? Most of the royal jewels appear to be antique stones and many pieces are convertible, so parts of a tiara or crown, for example, can be removed and worn as bracelets, necklaces, pendants and brooches, etc. But I dont know what you''re referring to by "lopping off"....can you explain?

 

[Rock Your Socks]

I know this is completely off topic and stupid but has anyone noticed some of these royals teeth...you''d think that being that rich that they would be able to get their teeth professionally cleaned...especially the queen of denmark...yuck!

 

[miraclesrule]

Date: 4/7/2008 1:27:19 PM
Author: SanDiegoLady

Date: 4/7/2008 12:21:31 PM
Author: emeraldeyes
Princess Michael of Kent wearing Princess Marina''s diamond and pearl festoon tiara, and some gumdrop-sized emerald earrings and brooch.

Great jewels but oh my stars wth is she doing with her neck?!!! LOL Her dress would have been lovely except for that ribbon that looks like a wide strip of masking tape around her shoulders..

ahahahaha, it does look like masking tape! Horrifying...

 

[LadyMaria]

There hasn’t been much posted on the Greek Royal family. I find this family interesting because we are watching the demise of an era. The Greek Royal family was sent into exile in 1967 and the monarchy was abolished. Most of the family now lives in London. While they are still referred to as King Constantine and Queen Anne-Marie, the titles don’t really mean anything.

Another interesting thing is how the Greek Royal family rare related to other royal families. Prince Phillip of Great Britain, was original a Prince of Greece and Denmark. His father Prince Andrew was related to Queen Olga of Greece. King Constantine’s sister Sofia is the Queen of Spain. Queen Anne-Marie’s oldest sister, Margarthe, is the Queen of Denmark.

Here’s the family break down: Constantine and Anne-Marie have 5 children:

1. Princess Alexia (married Carlos Morales). She has 4 children: Arietta, Ana Marie, Carlos, and Amelia

2. Crown Prince Pavlos (married Marie Chantal Miller). They also have 4 children: Maria Olympia, Constantine Alexios, Achileas Andreas, Odysseas Kimon, and #5 is due July 2008.

3. Prince Nikoloas (not married)

4. Prince Plillipos (not married)

5. Princess Theodora (not married

 

[LadyMaria]

First we have the emerald cabochon tiara. The emeralds came to Greece via the Grand Duchess Olga who married King Constantine I of Greece. She passed the emeralds to Queen Fredericka, consort of King Paul I of Greece. When Queen Olga wore this tiara she wore it in the traditional kokoshnik style from Russia. This tiara had a row of diamonds above and below it that framed the tiara. Queen Fredericka removed the frame. This tiara can also be worn as a necklace.

 

[LadyMaria]

Next we have the Khedive of Egypt tiara. This was a wedding gift to Princess Margaret of Connaught from the Khedive of Egypt when she married King Gustav VI of Sweden. Cartier designed this tiara. Margaret’s daughter Ingrid married King Fredrick IX of Denmark. They had 3 daughters: the present Queen Margarthe of Denmark, Princess Benedikte, and Princess Anne-Marie, who later married Crown Prince Constantine of Greece. This tiara went to Greece with Princess Anne-Marie, but it does sometimes return to Denmark.

When the 3 girls married, they all wore the Khedive of Egypt tiara to honor their grandmother. Here is then Princess Anne-Marie wearing it at her wedding.

 

[LadyMaria]

The tradition continues. When Princess Benedikte’s daughter Princess Alexandra married, she wore the Khedive of Egypt tiara. Here is a picture of Queen Anne-Marie’s daughter Princess Alexia wearing the tiara at her wedding.

 

[LadyMaria]

Here we have the Antique Corsage Tiara. This was a much smaller tiara, but Queen Anne-Marie had a couple of matching brooches added to it to make it bigger. This tiara travels in the family. Marie-Chantal Miller borrowed this tiara when she married Crown Prince Pavlos.

 

[LadyMaria]

Here is Princess Theodora wearing the Antique Corsage tiara at the wedding of Prince Joachim of Denmark and Marie Cavallier.

 

[LadyMaria]

Crown Princess Marie Chantal isn’t much into tiaras. Here is the only tiara she owns herself. It is a fringe tiara and was a wedding gift from her parents.

 

[LadyMaria]

Princess Alexia isn’t much into tiaras either. The only tiara she owns is this tiara that was an 18th birthday present from her parents. There is an aquamarine set in the middle

 

[LadyMaria]

Finally we have the Ruby Parure, which was a wedding present to Queen Olga of Greece. It is very similar to the Ruby Parure that Crown Princess Mary of Denmark wears. But, my picture is being stubborn so I''ll work on that.

 

[ohiogirl461]

Thanks LadyMaria,
I appreicate the history and the pictures.

 

[LadyMaria]

Okay, let''s see if I can get these Greek ruby tiara pictures to cooperate now!