If the ladies of the royal family are known for anything, it’s tiaras – and it’s no surprise, as they are known for being among the most expensive pieces of jewellery in the world.
Though Queen Camilla didn’t wear a tiara to her wedding to King Charles in 2005, she did wear one when she married her first husband.
The senior royal first tied the knot with Andrew Parker Bowles in 1973 – the couple wed in a Roman Catholic ceremony, followed by a reception at St. James’s Palace.
Queen Camilla wore a pie crust collar white gown with long sleeves and a ruffled hem, alongside a very special tiara.
To celebrate Queen Camilla’s 76th birthday on 17th July, leading diamond experts at Steven Stone have revealed everything you need to know about the tiara – from its origin to that all important price tag.
Over the years, King Charles has gifted his wife a plethora of jewels – including her enormous five-carat emerald-cut diamond engagement ring.
Though Queen Camilla has some family heirlooms of her own and she takes particularly great pleasure wearing jewels that belonged to her great-grandmother, Alice Keppel – King Edward VII’s last, most celebrated mistress.
One of her most sentimental pieces is the Cubitt-Shand tiara, which she wore to her first wedding. The floral diamond tiara is named after her Grandfather Roland Cubitt, who gifted the piece to her Grandmother Rosalind and her father Major Bruce Shand.
Queen Camilla inherited the tiara when her Grandmother died in 1986 and she’s not the only family member to have worn it to their wedding – her daughter Laura Lopes borrowed the gorgeous piece when she married Harry Lopes in 2006.
A clear favourite in her collection, Queen Camilla has stepped out for various events in the piece – including at a ceremonial reception that was held at the Royal Academy of the Arts in June 2015.
“Queen Camilla didn’t wear a tiara to her wedding to King Charles, presumably because it wasn’t her first marriage. It is believed to be against royal protocol to wear a tiara if the wedding isn’t your first – a belief that Princess Anne supported when she didn’t wear one at her second wedding to Sir Timothy Laurence.
Though the senior royal has had her fair share of tiara moments and one of our favourites is the Cubitt-Shand tiara that she wore to her first wedding to Andrew Parker Bowles. Laced with sentimentality as it was inherited from her Grandmother, the design of the tiara is formed of flowers and sprays of leaves, which rise to a central point in a slightly asymmetrical style.
Queen Camilla isn’t the only member of the family to have worn the tiara and she loaned it to her daughter Laura Lopes when she tied the knot with Harry Lopes in 2006. Clearly fond of the piece, Queen Camilla has worn it to various events over the years.
I’d estimate the intricate piece to be worth $385,000.”
maxwell stone, leading diamond expert, steven stone
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