8/6/2023 0 Comments Crown with black gemsThe monarch then called on the Asscher brothers, Joseph and Abraham, scions of the famed Dutch jewelers (and yes, of the iconic Asscher cut, which Joseph invented in 1902). The King was hesitant to accept, probably owing to political optics but maybe balking at the responsibility, too-Winston Churchill, then Colonial Under-Secretary, persuaded him to just say yes. Instead, in 1907, the government of the Transvaal Colony voted to gift the diamond to Edward as a show of good faith and loyalty after the events of the Second Boer War (in which the British empire and two independent Boer Republics, Transvaal among them, fought over imperialism, mostly, but also-diamonds). King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra at their coronation in 1902. Obviously, a second look would turn out to be highly judicious, though it took some time for the rough stone to be transformed into the nine dazzling diamonds (and about a hundred smaller brilliants) that are now among the royal family's most valuable jewels. According to jewelry lore, the uncut rock was so unfathomably enormous-and marked by such exceptional clarity and a unique blue and white tint-that the mine's manager initially dismissed it for a crystal and threw it out the window. Unearthed in a South Africa mine in 1905 and weighing 3,106 carats, the Cullinan-named after Thomas Cullinan, the chairman of the mining company-still holds the title of largest diamond ever found (if you're keeping score, the second largest, the 1,758-carat Sewelo, was discovered in Botswana in 2019 and now belongs to Louis Vuitton). ![]() But few, if any, of the gems in the Windsor vaults can quite compare to the Cullinan Diamonds. Since her accession to the throne in 1952, nearly 70 years ago, Queen Elizabeth has inherited, received, and commissioned a veritable treasure chest of magnificent jewels. She has Burmese Rubies and Brazilian Aquamarines Cambridge Emeralds and Kent Amethysts George VI Sapphires and Jordanian Turquoise. In light of this news, we are resurfacing this story, from 2021, on the Cullinan diamonds, which will soon be seen for the first time since Queen Elizabeth's death. For her own in 1911, the controversial Koh-i-Noor diamond took center stage, and was later given to George's wife Elizabeth for use in her own coronation crown.) (Technically speaking, Cullinan V was inserted into the crown when Mary wore it to her son King George's coronation in 1937. And in a touching tribute to her late mother-in-law, Camilla is reinserting three of the Cullinan diamonds-III, IV, V-that originally adorned the crown before they were turned into the brooches that were so beloved by Queen Elizabeth. ![]() First, the crown's eight detachable arches will be pared down to four. She will, however, put her own mark on it. In a sign of these times-and "in the interests of sustainability and efficiency," per the palace statement-the queen consort is reverting back to the old ways of recycling crowns. ![]() It's a departure from a longstanding tradition that began with Queen Charlotte in 1761, who commissioned her own tiara for her accession rather than don Mary of Modena's 1685 crown, as her predecessors had done. Update, February 14, 2023: Buckingham Palace announced this morning that Queen Consort Camilla will wear Queen Mary's crown for her upcoming coronation in May.
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