Focus on... Kent Jewels: A Summary

We have now finished the week dedicated to Kent jewels. Well, actually I cheated a bit and it was nine days instead of seven. I tried to write about the more interesting Kent Jewels but if I have left one of your favourites out, leave me a note and I'll write a post on it in future. Hope you like this feature! :)

Meanwhile, below is a summary of all the pieces that were covered:

Other Hair Pieces

Kent Aquamarine Tiara

Kent Diamond and Pearl Tiara

Kent Diamond Circles Bandeau

Kent Cambridge Sapphire Parure

Kent City of London Fringe Tiara

Princess Alexandra’s Tiara and Parure

Kent Diamond and Pearl Festoon Tiara

Wild Pansy Brooch
The Argyll Daisy Brooch
Emerald Shamrock Brooch
Princess Marina's Bow Brooch
Princess Michael's Cartier Clips
Princess Michael's Flower Brooch
Princess Louise's Emerald Pendant
Princess Michael's Dress Ornament
Princess Michael's Cherries Brooch

Princess Marina’s Girandole Earrings

More Random Pieces from the Kent Collection

Focus on... Kent Jewels: More Random Pieces

It will appear that we have covered most of the important or well-known pieces in the Kent collection. This post is dedicated to some of the jewels that didn't warrant a separate article.

Most jewels belong to Princess Michael of Kent because although it was the Duchess of Kent who inherited the bulk of jewels from Princess Marina's collection, Marie Christine is the only one among Kent ladies who wears her jewels fairly regularly.

Jewellery Sets

Princess Michael has some really interesting sets in her collection. One of them is the beautiful aquamarine set that consists of a necklace of pearls and aquamarines, a pair of earrings and a brooch. Sometimes, the Princess wears the brooch (made of three large square aquamarines) in a necklace setting. 

Princess Michael wearing her Aquamarine Set

Another beauty is a citrine set consisting of a pendant and a pair of earrings. The pendant can be worn with a detachable pearl drop. Marie Cristine often dons it both on its own (as a brooch), or incorporated into a necklace.

Focus on... Kent Jewels: Princess Michael's Cartier Clips

One of my personal favourites among Princess Michael’s jewellery collection is the lovely necklace she sometimes wears on extra-special occasions.

The Pearl and Sapphire Necklace with Cartier Clips at the sides

The necklace consists of seven rows of pearls and sapphire beads, which incorporate two sapphire and diamond clips at the sides. The clips are detachable and can be worn as brooches or hat ornaments.

Focus on... Kent Jewels: Princess Michael's Dress Ornament

One of the more unusual items in Princess Michael's collection is the dress ornament she has worn on several occasions.

Princess Michael's Dress Ornament

Princess Michael has worn this ornament on several occasions. One of them was a re-internment of the remains of Diane de Poitiers, the famous favourite of Henry II and one of Princess Michael's ancestresses (just as a point of interest, Marie Christine is also descended from Henry II's wife, Catherine de Medici).

Focus on... Kent Jewels: Princess Louise's Emerald Pendant

The emerald and pearl pendant is among the jewels the Kents inherited from Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll.

Princess Michael of Kent wearing the diamond and emerald pendant suspended from a pearl necklace

Like the Daisy Brooches, Princess Louise's emerald pendant was a wedding present, this time from her mother Queen Victoria. Louise wore it on her wedding day suspended from a diamond riviere necklace (also left to the Kents).

Focus on... Kent Jewels: The Argyll Daisy Brooch

These lovely daisy brooches come from the collection of Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll.

There are three brooches, one large and two smaller ones. They were made by Garrard and are encrusted by diamonds set in white and yellow gold.

Princess Louise was the second youngest daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. The diamond daisy brooches were a present to Princess Louise from three of her siblings – Prince Arthur, Prince Leopold and Princess Beatrice – on the occasion of her marriage to the Marquess of Lorne (then heir to the Dukedom of Argyll).

Focus on... Kent Jewels: Princess Michael's Cherries Brooch

This lovely Cherries Brooch comes from the collection of the Duchess of Windsor.

Princess Michael's Cherries Brooch

In its original form, it was actually a necklace that consisted of two rows of ruby beads with a large gold clasp at the end. From the clasp, two cherry pendants hang from several gold threads. The clasp also contained uncut emeralds and brilliants.

Focus on... Kent Jewels: The Flower Brooch

This lovely flower brooch is worn not by one but three different royal ladies.

Princess Michael's Purple Flower Brooch

The brooch is in form of a flower with five petals, with a diamond cluster in the middle and five pearls between the petals. It may be Kiki McDonough creation, although there is no confirmation.

Focus on... Kent Jewels: Emerald Shamrock Brooch

This brooch is another jewel that originated from Princess Marina’s collection. It is in a form of a shamrock encrusted with diamonds, with three round emeralds set in the middle.

Diamond and Emerald Shamrock Brooch

Although a admirer of more substantial jewels, Marina often donned this small, delicate brooch. Among the notable appearances of this brooch was the interview on the occasion of the engagement announcement of the Duke of Kent and Katherine Worsley.

Focus on... Kent Jewels: Wild Pansy Brooch

On the occasion of Prince Michael’s birth (or Princess Alexandra – there are conflicting reports), the Duke of Kent gave his wife a present of a lovely brooch.

Princess Michael of Kent wearing the Wild Pansy Brooch in a necklace

The Cartier brooch is in the form of wild pansy, or viola tricolour, and is embellished with sapphires, emeralds and black pearls.

Focus on... Kent Jewels: Other Hair Pieces

We have already discussed all the tiaras and bandeaus in the possession of the Kent family. Those pieces are The Kent Festoon Tiara, The Kent Aquamarine Tiara, The Cambridge Sapphire Parure, The Kent Diamond and Pearl Tiara, The Kent Diamond Circles Bandeau, The Kent City of London Fringe Tiara, and Princess Alexandra’s Tiara and Parure. Now it's time to discuss a couple of other hair pieces in the Kent collection.

Princess Marina had several star pendants (they are also referred to as "orange blossom hair ornaments" but they look more like stars to me) which she occasional wore in her hair. They were almost certainly a gift from her mother, Princess Nicholas of Greece and Denmark. 

Princess Marina (left) and Princess Alexandra (right) wearing the star pendants, also known as orange blossom hair ornaments

Princess Alexandra wore the pendants in her youth in the same way as her mother - as hair pieces. It isn't known whether she inherited the pendants because Marina left very little jewellery to her daughter. It may also be that the pendants are no longer in the family because they hadn't been seen for ages. 

Focus on... Kent Jewels: Diamond and Pearl Festoon Tiara

My personal favourite tiara in the Kent collection is the Festoon Tiara. It is also probably the most recognisable one among the Kent jewels.

The Kent Pearl and Diamond Festoon Tiara

The Kent Festoon Tiara was created in 1900s by unidentified jewellers. Although it comes in a Cartier case, no records exist in the firm to confirm the connection. 

It is also not known how the tiara made its way into the Kent collection although in all probability, it was purchased by the Duke of Kent for his wife, Princess Marina.

Focus on... Kent Jewels: The Aquamarine Tiara

It isn't known for certain how this beautiful aquamarine tiara ended in the Kent collection.

The Kent Aquamarine Tiara

The Aquamarine Tiara was created in 1908 by the French jeweller Georges Fouquet. The original tiara was in the form of translucent enamel a jour bandeau incorporating five ovals. In the centre of each oval was a flower motif consisting of a single large Siberian aquamarine, each aquamarine surrounded by six natural pearls.

Focus on... Kent Jewels: The City of London Fringe Tiara

This lovely fringe tiara was one of the many gifts of Russian provenance and/or style that Princess Marina og Greece and Denmark (whose mother was a Grand Duchess of Russia) received on her wedding to the Duke of Kent.

The City of London Fringe Tiara

The tiara was created for Grand Duchess Vladimir around 1870 by unknown craftsman. It is composed of diamonds set in gold and silver fringes, and unlike many tiaras of similar fringe design, cannot be converted into a necklace.

After the Grand Duchess’s death in exile in 1920, her children sold some of her fabulous jewels to maintain their lifestyle.

Focus on... Kent Jewels: The Diamond and Pearl Tiara

The Kent Diamond and Pearl Tiara is currently the only known major tiara in the possession of the Duchess of Kent. Its origins are a bit difficult to trace because there is no definite, confirmed information on it. Nevertheless, the data that is available is sufficient for a pretty sound guesswork.

The Kent Diamond and Pearl Tiara (current form)

Queen Mary purchased a small diamond bandeau from Gerrard’s in 1925. She made minor adjustments to it so that her famous Cambridge emeralds could be mounted on the top. She didn't wear it very often though and it largely remained in obscurity for the next couple of decades.

Focus on... Kent Jewels: Princess Alexandra’s Tiara & Parure

Princess Marina was apparently of the belief that a woman’s jewellery collection must be formed by gifts from the family she is marrying into, meaning she left very few jewels to her daughter. And so it happens there is only one tiara in Princess Alexandra’s personal possession – but it’s versatile and beautiful enough to count for two.

Princess Alexandra's Tiara (pearl setting)

Before her marriage, the Princess occasionally used tiaras from her mother’s collection, including the Festoon Tiara, City of London Fringe Tiara, and Diamond and Pearl Fringe Tiara. Indeed, for her marriage to Honourable Angus Ogilvy in 1963 she wore the lovely City of London Fringe Tiara. 

Focus on... Kent Jewels: Diamond Circles Bandeau

Another jewel to have now departed the Kent collection is this lovely bandeau.

The Diamond "Snake" Bandeau in necklace form with matching earrings

The modern appearance of the bandeau is very deceiving; it's in fact an old family heirloom. The jewel was commissioned in 1890s by Grand Duchess Vladimir of Russia who was renown for her fabulous jewellery collection. 

Focus on... Kent Jewels: Cambridge Sapphire Parure

This post in our Kent Jewels series will be devoted to one of the magnificent sets that once belonged to the family – the Cambridge Sapphire Parure.

The current button version of the Cambridge Sapphire Tiara

The parure was created in the second half of 19th century by unknown masters. Queen Mary inherited the Cambridge sapphires from her aunt and godmother, Princess Augusta, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, who herself had gotten them from her mother, the Duchess of Cambridge.

Focus on... Kent Jewels: Princess Marina's Bow Brooch

When discussing the Kent jewellery collection, I couldn't possibly ignore one of Princess Marina's most stunning pieces – the Diamond Bow Brooch.

Princes Marina's Diamond Bow Brooch

The brooch is executed in a classical bow style with the double ribbon bow centred by an oval-shaped 3.5 carat diamond, and accented by numerous pear-shaped and old mine-cut diamonds weighing approximately 38.00 carats. The smaller old mine and rose-cut diamonds weigh another 64.25 carats.

Focus on... Kent Jewels: Princess Marina’s Girandole Earrings

We have already discussed Queen Elizabeth’s beautiful girandole earrings, and now it is turn for their equally stunning cousin – Princess Marina’s Diamond Girandole Earrings.

Princess Marina's Girandole Earrings

This gorgeous pair is made in a classical girandole design, which was developed in France in 1700s and named after the crystal-pendant candelabras of the time. It went out of fashion in early 19th century but then underwent a period of a renaissance during the revival of Rococo styles in late 19th century.

This earrings are estimated to have been made around 1770s in France. They consist of a detachable pear-shaped diamond pendant surrounded by old mine-cut diamonds with pendants on either side. The earrings are quite long - about 8,8 cm long - and are mounted in silver.