British Royal Jewels: Cullinan VII Diamond

Cullinan VII is an 8.8 carat marquise diamond, one of the nine numbered stones from the Cullinan Diamond. It is detachable for use with the Cullinan VIII Brooch, as an alternative to the larger marquise pendant, Cullinan VI.

The Delhi Durbar Necklace with Cullinan VII suspended from it on a detachable chain

The diamond is suspended as an asymmetrical pendant on a detachable chain of ten graduated brilliant diamonds (along with a similar emerald pendant) from the magnificent Delhi Durbar Necklace which incorporated nine of the celebrated Cambridge emeralds.

Queen Mary wearing the Cullinan VII diamond suspended from the Delhi Durbar Necklace

Unlike most other Cullinans which were made multi-purpose, Cullinan VII has largely remained in the same necklace setting. Certainly, Queen Elizabeth has never worn it in any other way. She inherited the necklace, along with bulk of Queen Mary’s impressive jewellery collection, upon Mary’s death in 1953. Queen Elizabeth usually wears the necklace with the Grand Duchess Vladimir Tiara when it is set with emeralds. It's usually her emerald necklace of choice so we've probably seen Cullinan VII more than any other Cullinan Diamonds. 

Queen Elizabeth wearing the Cullinan VII diamond suspended from the Delhi Durbar Necklace

The Delhi Durbar Necklace is really quite stunning and deserves a post of its own, which is why I am deliberately not going into details of the necklace. These series are dedicated to the Cullinans and so Cullinans I discuss; however, a post on the necklace will be made soon enough.

To read more about the fascinating story of the uncut diamond, have a look at this article - Day in History: The world’s largest diamond ever, the Cullinan, is found.

Sources and photo credits: Royal Collection, “Diamond: A Journey to the Heart of an Obsession” by Matthew Hart, “The Queen’s Diamonds” by Hugh Roberts, "The Queen's Jewels" by Leslie Field