Princess Margaret did things her own way, in just about every aspect of her life – and that included her wedding day.
Renowned for breaking royal protocol and challenging age-old tradition, the Princess decided to purchase her wedding tiara, rather than borrow one from the extensive vault of crown jewels.
Princess Margaret bought the Poltimore tiara at an auction in 1959. At the time of purchase, the Princess wasn’t even engaged.
To celebrate what would have been Princess Maragret’s 93rd birthday on 21st August 2023, diamond experts at Steven Stone have revealed everything you need to know about the Poltimore tiara – including its staggering value.
The Poltimore tiara originally belonged to Lady Poltimore, who purchased the piece from royal jeweler Garrard back in 1870. It was passed down through her family, and eventually landed in the hands of her grandson, the Fourth Baron Poltimore, who sold it to Princess Margaret at auction in 1959 for £5,500 ($7,000).
An incredible piece, the jewel is convertible and can be taken off its frame. By doing this, it can be transformed into a fringe necklace and eleven brooches. It features an entire row of cushion-shaped and old-cut diamond clusters, alternating with diamond-set scroll motifs – each surmounted by old-cut diamond terminals.
The first time that was saw caught a glimpse of the piece was before the announcement of Princess Margaret’s engagement, when she wore it as a necklace. The late Princess didn’t debut it as a tiara until her wedding day.
Clearly one of her favourite jewels, Princess Margaret kept the tiara in regular rotation throughout her life – though she was photographed many times in the piece, the most famous photograph was taken by her then husband Anthony Armstrong-Jones in 1962, but didn’t become public until 2006. The photo sees the Princess posed in the bathtub, whilst wearing the tiara.
The tiara was sold to a private buyer for a staggering £1.4 million ($1.7 million) in 2006. Having taken a close look at the images available, our experts estimate it to be worth £4 million ($5 million) in 2023.
“Princess Margaret did things her own way, in just about every aspect of her life – and that included her wedding day. Renowned for breaking royal protocol and challenging age-old tradition, the Princess decided to purchase her wedding tiara, rather than borrow one from the extensive vault of crown jewels.
Princess Margaret bought the Poltimore tiara – which originally belonged to Lady Poltimore – at an auction in 1959 for £5,500. The tiara can be is convertible and can be taken off its frame – by doing this, it can be transformed into a fringe necklace and eleven brooches. It features an entire row of cushion-shaped and old-cut diamond clusters, alternating with diamond-set scroll motifs, each surmounted by old-cut diamond terminals.
Though the Princess kept the tiara in regular rotation throughout her life, thus as photographed multiple times in the piece, there’s one photograph in particular that sticks out – a photograph that sees the Princess posed in the bathtub, whilst wearing the tiara. Taken by her then husband Anthony Armstrong-Jones in 1962, the photograph didn’t become public until 2006.
I’d estimate the tiara to be worth £4 million ($5 million), making it one of the most expensive tiaras to have been worn by a British Royal bride.”
maxwell stone, leading diamond expert, steven stone
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