Royal Jewels

[T L]

Date: 3/15/2010 12:01:15 PM
Author: jewelerman
Question for the forum!
I know this topic and piece of jewelry has been covered in the recent past but I have a question a the Anne Bolin pearl necklace with her initial B and drop pearls....Where is the necklace today?I thought it remained in her family line,but am unsure of that fact.I just got done viewing the BBC movie The other Bolin Girl and had this question.Also for those that have seen the movie...look for the in consistency with the necklace....in one scene there is a long term neck shot fron behind and the necklace has a round modern style clasp...the end of the movie she removed the necklace and it has ribbons as its clasp...also the on the cover of the DVD box it shows he wearing a necklace with fresh water pearls and next to it a close up of the necklace with round knotted strand of pearls!

It no longer exists. However, it is the inspiration for several reproductions (some authentic and some not so authentic in keeping to the exact design) in film and television including "Ugly Betty," "The Tudors" and almost every movie/theatrical play/television program that ever had Anne as a character. It's a pity it doesn't exist, but truth be told, it's extremely rare for pearls to survive from 400+ years ago. They're organic gems and if not properly cared for, they do not stand the test of time very well.

ETA: The only pearls to exist from the period of King Henry VIII that I know of, are a strand he gave to the nursemaid to his son, Prince Edward.

 

[T L]

Date: 3/11/2010 7:02:48 PM
Author: prince.of.preslav
Today (11th March) The Queen & The Ducke of Edinburgh visited Wyvern Barracks in Exeter. The Barracks are hosting the Devon Cadet 150 celebrations to mark 150 years of the Cadet movement.

Elizabeth II wore the brooch from the Kent amethyst demi-parure:

Like Diana, I can''t stop looking at photos of the Queen. She''s still such a beautiful lady, even in her 80''s. What a delightful smile she has.

 

[Josefine]

ingrid at carl gustav and silvias wedding 1976

 

[Josefine]

birgitta at her brothers wedding 1976

 

[Josefine]

christina at her brothers wedding 1976

 

[Josefine]

margarthea at her brothers wedding 1976

 

[Josefine]

desiree at her brothers wedding 1976

 

[Josefine]

and queen of denmark at carl gustafs wedding 1976

 

[prince.of.preslav]

Very nice photos from Carl XVI Gustaf and Silvia''s wedding! Thaks for posting, Josefine!

Two facts about the jewels worn at the wedding:
-The diamond earrings worn by Queen Ingrid are now with her third daughter Queen Anne Marie.
-The five row pearl necklace worn by Princess Birgitta was a wedding present from her mother, Princess Sibylla, who got it as a 40th birthday present. The necklace is now in possesion of her daughter Princess Desiree of Hohenzollern.

Since we last discussed what jewels might or might not be worn at the wedding, I made a breaf research of photos from the 1976 wedding and now with the photos posted here do we still think Victoria''s wedding will be white tie and tiaras like in Denmark?

Bobby

 

[prince.of.preslav]

Date: 3/15/2010 1:39:57 PM
Author: tourmaline_lover

ETA: The only pearls to exist from the period of King Henry VIII that I know of, are a strand he gave to the nursemaid to his son, Prince Edward.

And there''re still four baroque pearls that hang from the arches of the Imperial State Crown that belonged to Elizabeth I, Henry VIII''s daughter.

TL, do you have more information about that pearl strand. Maybe a photo or two or an article?

Bobby

 

[prince.of.preslav]

Today TRH The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall started an official visit to Eastern Europe (Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic). The visit started in Poland, where TRH will stay for three days. In the evening they attended a banquet with the president and his wife. The Duchess wore her new pearl and diamond choker and dangle earrings:

 

[T L]

Date: 3/15/2010 4:29:39 PM
Author: prince.of.preslav

Date: 3/15/2010 1:39:57 PM
Author: tourmaline_lover

ETA: The only pearls to exist from the period of King Henry VIII that I know of, are a strand he gave to the nursemaid to his son, Prince Edward.

And there're still four baroque pearls that hang from the arches of the Imperial State Crown that belonged to Elizabeth I, Henry VIII's daughter.

TL, do you have more information about that pearl strand. Maybe a photo or two or an article?

Bobby

Bobby,
Are the four baroques truly from Elizabeth I though? I know it's been said they were, but has that fact been authenticated? Since she was queen after the passing of Henry VIII, that's why I indicated that the only pearls I knew to exist from his (Henry VIII's) time was that strand he gave to his son's nursemaid.

The information about the pearls is in my book "Tudor and Jacobean Jewellery" by Diana Scarisbrick. I highly recommend that book (it's out of print though) to any historical jewelry buff. A photo of the pearl strand is in there as well, but this is what the book states about these pearls. I will scan the photo in when I get a chance. I cannot find a photo of it on the net.

According to family tradition, these pearls were a gift from Henry VIII to Sybill Penn, a nuse to the baby Prince Edward, who was devoted to her. While pearl necklaces have survived from the 17th century, it is unusual for one of 16th century date to have been passed down from the first owner to present day

We must also not forget the most famous pearl from the Tudor period, if not the most famous pearl in the world, the Le Peregrina pearl given as a present to Queen Mary I from her husband, Spanish Prince Phillip (later Phillip II of Spain) and now owned by Elizabeth Taylor. Mary was the half sister to Queen Elizabeth by Henry VIII's first marriage to Katherine of Aragon. He later supplanted Katherine with Anne Boleyn, who was Elizabeth's mother. Elizabeth Taylor commissioned Cartier to make the pearl and ruby necklace for this truly royal of royal gems.

 

[T L]

Even as a young girl, in this portrait as a princess (around 13 years old), the future Queen Elizabeth I wears pearls on her French hood, her neckline, a pendant and her jeweled girdle. It's unfortunate there were no cameras back then. One can only imagine how oppulent costume and jewelry were for Renaissance royalty.

 

[T L]

We often hear about the famous Anne Boleyn pearl necklace, but here is Henry VIII's third queen, Jane Seymour, with a beautiful pendant with drop pearls The letters in the pendant are IHS, which is the Greek name for Christ. She wears pearls around her neck as well and a drop pearl above her gown's neckline and on her gable (head piece).

This is detail from Holbein's famous portrait of Queen Jane.

 

[robinj]

Date: 3/15/2010 4:23:39 PM
Author: prince.of.preslav
Very nice photos from Carl XVI Gustaf and Silvia''s wedding! Thaks for posting, Josefine!

Two facts about the jewels worn at the wedding:
-The diamond earrings worn by Queen Ingrid are now with her third daughter Queen Anne Marie.
-The five row pearl necklace worn by Princess Birgitta was a wedding present from her mother, Princess Sibylla, who got it as a 40th birthday present. The necklace is now in possesion of her daughter Princess Desiree of Hohenzollern.

Since we last discussed what jewels might or might not be worn at the wedding, I made a breaf research of photos from the 1976 wedding and now with the photos posted here do we still think Victoria''s wedding will be white tie and tiaras like in Denmark?

Bobby

There''s a quite delightful little clip with Princess Birgitta von Hohenzollern on youtube from the late 80''s when she''s showing her wardrobe. The necklace above is mentioned breifly. My german is not what it should be, but I think they''re saying that it was a 50th birthday present to princess Sibylla from Birgittas grandfather. (I can only assume that it''s the paternal grandfather, the king, Gustaf IV Adolf, they reffer to, since Sibyllas father died in the early 50s.) (skip to 2:55 if you don''t want to see the 80''s outfits.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_VqIJG1Eg4

on this site they say that the pearl necklace has belonged to Queen Victoria of Sweden nee Baden... but I must admit that I''m a bit sceptic to the facts on that site.
http://www.royal-magazin.de/german/hohenzollern/perlen-diadem-birgitta.htm

Princess Sibylla wear it often together with the five-strand pearlnecklace with a big clasp of a cabochon cut blue sapphire surrounded by diamonds. It has belonged to Queen Victoria and have 294 pearls and the sapphire is framed by 17 diamonds. Queen Victoria wrote in her last will that she wanted her grandson Prince Lennart´s future wife should have it if she was a royal herself. If she is not the necklace should go to the foundation. Then King Gustaf V gave the necklace to Princess Sibylla as 40th birthday present. It is now owned by the daughter of Princess Birgitta, above Princess Desiree wore it first time on her wedding-day in the evening.

...

I am a bit worried that it might be a hat-wedding, but the tabloids in sweden seems all set on a white-tie wedding though. maybe they know something I don''t.

 

[prince.of.preslav]

Date: 3/15/2010 8:24:20 PM
Author: robinj


There's a quite delightful little clip with Princess Birgitta von Hohenzollern on youtube from the late 80's when she's showing her wardrobe. The necklace above is mentioned breifly. My german is not what it should be, but I think they're saying that it was a 50th birthday present to princess.............
I am a bit worried that it might be a hat-wedding, but the tabloids in sweden seems all set on a white-tie wedding though. maybe they know something I don't.

Thanks for providing the links, Robin! I can hardly understand anything in German, but it was nice to see the princess. She has/had some nice pearls and that sapphire is just great. Princess Birgitta mentions her daughter (Désirée) and if I understand correctly, HRH says that her mother wanted Princess Désirée to get the necklace some day (as it happened).

I don't know why you think royal-magazin.de is unreliable, but here's a pic of Princes Sibylla and the necklace (and the pink sapphire brooch) and IMO she looks very much like a woman in her 40s. The only think I can't get is how a jewel that was put in the fundation can leave it as a BD present?

Bobby

 

[prince.of.preslav]

Thanks for the wonderful photos of the medieval queens, TL. You seem to be very much into pearls and medieval history and I really enjoy your history/pearl posts. Thanks for the quote and the name of the book. I'm looking forward to the scan.

Re: Elizabeth I's pearls
The pearls were indeed Elizabeth I's. At least that's what Elizabeth II told us in a video. I don't know if #1 was the first owner or if they were around before her, though. Whatever the truth is, I think the RF (The Queen in particular) would know the exact story befind them.

A link to the above-mentioned video - The Imperial State Crown by Queen Elizabeth II.

Bobby

And here's a photo of The Crown, which clearly shows the four pearls:

 

[T L]

Date: 3/16/2010 6:59:52 PM
Author: prince.of.preslav
Thanks for the wonderful photos of the medieval queens, TL. You seem to be very much into pearls and medieval history and I really enjoy your history/pearl posts. Thanks for the quote and the name of the book. I'm looking forward to the scan.

Re: Elizabeth I's pearls
The pearls were indeed Elizabeth I's. At least that's what Elizabeth II told us in a video. I don't know if #1 was the first owner or if they were around before her, though. Whatever the truth is, I think the RF (The Queen in particular) would know the exact story befind them.

A link to the above-mentioned video - The Imperial State Crown by Queen Elizabeth II.

Bobby

And here's a photo of The Crown, which clearly shows the four pearls:

Why thank you Bobby,
My pleasure. This is such an informative thread, and I love adding to it. What a wonderful video narrated by HM - such a treat!!

ETA: I just read that St. Edwards crown also has some pearls said to belong to Elizabeth I as well, but I cannot find photos of them.

 

[robinj]

Date: 3/16/2010 6:21:04 PM
Author: prince.of.preslav

Date: 3/15/2010 8:24:20 PM
Author: robinj



There''s a quite delightful little clip with Princess Birgitta von Hohenzollern on youtube from the late 80''s when she''s showing her wardrobe. The necklace above is mentioned breifly. My german is not what it should be, but I think they''re saying that it was a 50th birthday present to princess.............
I am a bit worried that it might be a hat-wedding, but the tabloids in sweden seems all set on a white-tie wedding though. maybe they know something I don''t.

Thanks for providing the links, Robin! I can hardly understand anything in German, but it was nice to see the princess. She has/had some nice pearls and that sapphire is just great. Princess Birgitta mentions her daughter (Désirée) and if I understand correctly, HRH says that her mother wanted Princess Désirée to get the necklace some day (as it happened).

I don''t know why you think royal-magazin.de is unreliable, but here''s a pic of Princes Sibylla and the necklace (and the pink sapphire brooch) and IMO she looks very much like a woman in her 40s. The only think I can''t get is how a jewel that was put in the fundation can leave it as a BD present?

Bobby

Thank you for the nice picture!

I see I wrote a mistake; Birgitta says that Sibylla got it as a 40''s birthday present.

I think that royal-magazin has lots of small little errors; Birgittas grandfather is King Gustaf IV Adolf (king 1950-72) not King Gustaf V (king 1907-50) and also the story about the necklace going to the foundation and then becoming a gift... They are small mistakes, but there are many of them.

 

[laurensmama]

Could someone please explain how the foundation works? Are the jewels the property of the reigning monarch and then loaned to members of the family? Or are they like the crown jewels in the UK which belong to the nation? Just curious. Thanks

 

[prince.of.preslav]

Date: 3/17/2010 1:15:14 PM
Author: laurensmama
Could someone please explain how the foundation works? Are the jewels the property of the reigning monarch and then loaned to members of the family? Or are they like the crown jewels in the UK which belong to the nation? Just curious. Thanks

Hi Laurensmama!

The purpose of these foundations is to manage and maintain the royal possessions like jewels, carriages, silverware, paintings, money, etc. The reason to set up a foundation like this is to keep the collection intact for the use of the future royal generations and to uphold the image and dignity of the royal family/monarchy. The only such F I know about are in the Netherlands and Sweden.
Since members of the royal families donated to the F their personal belongings, they aren't property of the State like the Crown Jewels in the UK.
Like every other foundation, these also have a chairman/chairwoman, who is the monarch himself. He/She desides whether to loan a jewel to a member of his/her family or not and if yes - which. There's also a board, which consists of other members of the royal house.
Should a foundation be disscolved, the objects in its possession will be distributed among the descendants of the donators.

Hope this was helpful!

Regards,
Bobby

 

[prince.of.preslav]

Date: 3/17/2010 4:33:49 AM
Author: robinj
Thank you for the nice picture!


I see I wrote a mistake; Birgitta says that Sibylla got it as a 40's birthday present.


I think that royal-magazin has lots of small little errors; Birgittas grandfather is King Gustaf IV Adolf (king 1950-72) not King Gustaf V (king 1907-50) and also the story about the necklace going to the foundation and then becoming a gift... They are small mistakes, but there are many of them.

I see what you mean, Robin. I've also found such mistakes, but despite all of them, we can't deny that the site is very informative and has many lovely and rare photos.

Bobby

 

[robinj]

Date: 3/17/2010 6:50:49 PM
Author: prince.of.preslav

Date: 3/17/2010 4:33:49 AM
Author: robinj
Thank you for the nice picture!


I see I wrote a mistake; Birgitta says that Sibylla got it as a 40''s birthday present.


I think that royal-magazin has lots of small little errors; Birgittas grandfather is King Gustaf IV Adolf (king 1950-72) not King Gustaf V (king 1907-50) and also the story about the necklace going to the foundation and then becoming a gift... They are small mistakes, but there are many of them.

I see what you mean, Robin. I''ve also found such mistakes, but despite all of them, we can''t deny that the site is very informative and has many lovely and rare photos.

Bobby

picture-wise it''s an absolute gold mine!! and it does contain alllot of information. I do however take the info there with a pinch of salt nowadays.

 

[prince.of.preslav]

I also don''t rely on all the information I see there, but there''s information from books on royal jewels and sales catalogues, which I thing is quite reliable. There''s a lot of speculation and the samall mistakes we mentioned earlier, but all in all I think it''s good source about jewels.

Have you seen the new pages on Mary, Princess Royal? There''re great photos and information. At least half of them were new to me.

A bit of o/t - On 16 March The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall attended an evening gala
at the Chopin School of Music. Here''s a photo of them arriving. What do you guys think of her outfit? For me it''s a total faux pas. One shouldn''t wear boots at an eveing engagement, and especially if it''s black tie! And to me the skirt looks hilarious:

 

[loriken214]

Date: 3/18/2010 2:00:04 PM
Author: prince.of.preslav
I also don''t rely on all the information I see there, but there''s information from books on royal jewels and sales catalogues, which I thing is quite reliable. There''s a lot of speculation and the samall mistakes we mentioned earlier, but all in all I think it''s good source about jewels.

Have you seen the new pages on Mary, Princess Royal? There''re great photos and information. At least half of them were new to me.

A bit of o/t - On 16 March The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall attended an evening gala
at the Chopin School of Music. Here''s a photo of them arriving. What do you guys think of her outfit? For me it''s a total faux pas. One shouldn''t wear boots at an eveing engagement, and especially if it''s black tie! And to me the skirt looks hilarious:

I just can''t get used to Camilla....sorry!

Lori

 

[Imdanny]

Date: 3/19/2010 2:03:09 AM
Author: loriken214

Date: 3/18/2010 2:00:04 PM

Author: prince.of.preslav

I also don't rely on all the information I see there, but there's information from books on royal jewels and sales catalogues, which I thing is quite reliable. There's a lot of speculation and the samall mistakes we mentioned earlier, but all in all I think it's good source about jewels.


Have you seen the new pages on Mary, Princess Royal? There're great photos and information. At least half of them were new to me.


A bit of o/t - On 16 March The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall attended an evening gala

at the Chopin School of Music. Here's a photo of them arriving. What do you guys think of her outfit? For me it's a total faux pas. One shouldn't wear boots at an eveing engagement, and especially if it's black tie! And to me the skirt looks hilarious:

I just can't get used to Camilla....sorry!

Lori

The bottom of the outfit (yes, including the boots) makes no sense at all. I do like the fabric of the top. Overall, fail. It looks like she's wearing two (at least) different outfits.

 

[T L]

Date: 3/18/2010 2:00:04 PM
Author: prince.of.preslav
I also don''t rely on all the information I see there, but there''s information from books on royal jewels and sales catalogues, which I thing is quite reliable. There''s a lot of speculation and the samall mistakes we mentioned earlier, but all in all I think it''s good source about jewels.

Have you seen the new pages on Mary, Princess Royal? There''re great photos and information. At least half of them were new to me.

A bit of o/t - On 16 March The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall attended an evening gala
at the Chopin School of Music. Here''s a photo of them arriving. What do you guys think of her outfit? For me it''s a total faux pas. One shouldn''t wear boots at an eveing engagement, and especially if it''s black tie! And to me the skirt looks hilarious:

Bobby,
You know you''re opening a can of worms with the people that don''t love Camilla (and that''s putting it nicely).

 

[prince.of.preslav]

Well TL, you know that opening a can of worms wasn't intentional. You've probably noticed that I respect TRH The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall very much and that my comments towards The Duchess are rather flattering. You and other posters/lurkers have probably seen a post of mine explaining how my attitude and opinion towards Camilla have changes with the years. With my previous post I was just expressing my opinion on her outfit and why (IMO) it wasn't appropriate for the occasion.
One shouldn't like or dislike a certain royal because of his/her clothes, but because of the work he/she does. Margrethe II is not less liked and respected by me than her cousin Elizabeth II because of her rather strange and (sometimes) old-fashioned clothes. The work both Queens do and the way they express the dignity of the country, nation, royal house and family they represent is what actually matters. The same goes to Camilla, Maxima, Mary and Marie and formerly to Queen Anne Marie and the late Diana, Princess of Wales.
Of course Camilla is in a worse situation, because people still remember that she was the reason for Charles and Diana's divroce. And they take every faux pas by her to attack her and to say again'n'again how bad she is. The only bad thing she did, however, was that she loved and still loves Prince Charles and obviously he also loved/s her.

Fullstop!

PS: I also like the jaket she wore. It was probably the best part of her oufit.

With all my respect to everybody's feelings and opinions,

Bogdan

 

[prince.of.preslav]

And to open yet another can of worms, here's a clear photo of Camilla wearing her insect brooch in Hungary as she visits the Jewish Cemetary in Budapest on March 18:

 

[prince.of.preslav]

And a link to photos of Crown Princess Mary of Denmark''s earrings at Billed-Bladet - Billed-Bladet - Marys flotteste frisurer

Bobby