The Royal Family’s dazzling aquamarines

by · Royal Central

Queen Camilla wore the Aquamarine Ribbon Tiara for the first time at the Diplomatic Reception. However, the British Royal Family has several impressive aquamarine jewels in their vaults. 

The aquamarine tiara chosen by Queen Camilla has also been a favourite of the Duchess of Edinburgh
(By Frankie Fouganthin – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wiki Commons)

Queen Elizabeth II first received a stunning aquamarine and diamond necklace and pair of matching pendant earrings in 1953 as a gift from Brazil. The necklace features nine large oblong aquamarines set into nine diamond scrolls. Each scroll has a larger aquamarine drop. 

The Queen then received an aquamarine and diamond hair ornament and three years later, she had the stones used to make a large tiara. 

Queen Elizabeth II had a gift of aquamarines turned into a very modern royal jewellery set
(Agência Brasil – EBC, cropped by Limongi, CC BY 3.0 BR , via Wikimedia Commons)

Historian Leslie Fields describes the tiara in The Queen’s Jewels, “four scroll-shaped motifs… positioned around the three upright oblong[ aquamarines]… a collet aquamarine was placed on the tip of each of the seven vertical ornaments.” 

The late Queen wore her aquamarine parure frequently. The Brazilian Aquamarine Parure is not her only sentimental blue set, though. 

Queen Elizabeth II wore her aquamarine clips for a portrait taken in her Platinum Jubilee year
(Ranald Mackechnie/ Buckingham Palace)

In 1944, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth gave their daughter, Princess Elizabeth, a set of aquamarine and diamond brooches. Known as the Aquamarine Clips, the two brooches were made by Boucheron and feature several aquamarines in several shapes. 

The Duchess of Edinburgh has been a big fan of the Royal Family’s aquamarines through the years
(i-Images/ Pool)

The Duchess of Edinburgh began wearing a striking and modern aquamarine and diamond tiara in the mid-2000s. The wave design features a large oval aquamarine in the centre and can be converted into a necklace. 

Queen Camilla chose a special set of aquamarines when she led the Royal Family at the Commonwealth Day service this year
(BBC still/ fair use)

At Commonwealth Day in March 2024, Queen Camilla wore a brooch that once belonged to the late Queen. The brooch is made of one large aquamarine set in an upside down diamond heart with a second heart-shaped aquamarine suspended below.