When Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II died, she left behind an indelible imprint on British society – and around £6 billion worth of crown jewels.

While the late Queen passed on many of her most precious heirlooms to those closest to her; Queen Camilla has her £800k Diamond Diadem, while the Princess of Wales has inherited her £66.3m Nizam of Hyderabad necklace, several jewels haven’t been seen in public for decades – and may never be seen again.

From the dazzling tiaras not seen since the 1940s, to the royal’s long-forgotten-about diadems, discover the Queen’s most precious jewels that remain mysteriously locked away in the royal vaults… 

When Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II died, she left behind an indelible imprint on British society – and around £6 billion worth of crown jewels.

While the late Queen passed on many of her most precious heirlooms to those closest to her; Queen Camilla has her £800k Diamond Diadem, while the Princess of Wales has inherited her £66.3m Nizam of Hyderabad necklace, several jewels haven’t been seen in public for decades – and may never be seen again.

From the dazzling tiaras not seen since the 1940s, to the royal’s long-forgotten-about diadems, discover the Queen’s most precious jewels that remain mysteriously locked away in the royal vaults… 

Queen Alexandra’s Kokoshnik Tiara

This striking tiara was gifted to Queen Alexandra, when she was known as the Princess of Wales, on her 25th wedding anniversary to Edward VII in 1888.

It was passed down to her daughter-in-law Queen Mary, who then passed it down to the Queen.

It’s been almost a decade since it came out of the royal vault, having last been worn in 2015 for a Mexican state banquet. 

Grand Duchess Vladimir Tiara

The Queen’s striking diamond loop headpiece was originally made for Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna as a wedding gift in 1874. 

Over the years, this precious piece has been altered to allow the pearl droplets to be interchangeable – the Queen wore it in its original form, without the pearls entirely, and with emerald droplets. 

The spellbinding tiara was worn as late as 2019 by the late Queen, but given how infrequently the senior royal ladies wear tiaras, it seems likely this tiara will remain in the royal vault for years to come. 

Nizam of Hyderabad tiara

The Princess of Wales was lucky enough to wear the Queen’s incredibly sentimental Nizam of Hyderabad necklace when she attended a black-tie reception at the National Portrait Gallery in 2014, rewearing it at a Buckingham Palace reception for the Diplomatic Corps in 2019.

The late monarch personally loaned Princess Kate the multi-million-pound platinum and diamond Cartier necklace, which was a wedding gift from the monarch of India’s Hyderabad State, Asaf Jah VII, in 1947. 

The Court Jeweller writes: “The Nizam of Hyderabad tiara, however, now exists only in photographs. In 1973, the Queen decided to dismantle the piece. 

“We don’t know precisely why, but it was taken apart at a time when the monarch was making subtle changes to her jewellery collection, remaking existing pieces and acquiring new ones.”

Aquamarine Ribbon Tiara

The Aquamarine Ribbon Tiara truly is a spectacle. The delicate piece, crafted from interwoven diamonds and aquamarines, was worn just once by Her Late Majesty – during a tour of Canada in the summer of 1970. 

It was then passed onto the Queen’s daughter-in-law, Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh, though she hasn’t worn it for over a decade. Given how rare it is for the royal ladies to have a ‘tiara moment’ as part of King Charles’ shakeup of the modern monarchy, it seems unlikely we’ll see the Aquamarine Ribbon Tiara in public again. 

The Plunket tiara

Another of the late Queen’s retired tiaras has a fascinating story – and, in fact, didn’t belong to Her Majesty at all. 

According to The Court Jeweller, The Plunket Tiara came about because she suffered from a wardrobe malfunction whilst en route to a gala in 1973. 

“There was no time to return to the palace and retrieve another tiara, but one of the Queen’s courtiers and closest friends came to the rescue,” writes the jewellery expert. 

“Patrick Plunket, who was both the 7th Baron Plunket and a central member of the royal household, lived nearby, and he was able to run home and grab his family’s diamond tiara for her to wear. The Queen placed it on her head and arrived at the gala as if nothing had happened at all.”

The royal was never seen wearing the Plunket tiara again.

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Source: The Wall Street Journal