Queen Elizabeth II: Brazilian Aquamarine Tiaras

Brazilian Aquamarine Tiara
The Brazil parure is one of the most modern jewels in the collection. In 1953, the President and people of Brazil presented Elizabeth II with the coronation gift of a necklace and matching pendant earrings of aquamarines and diamonds.

Queen Elizabeth ordered the royal jeweller Garrard to complete the parure with a tiara. This wonderful creation has an aquamarine as a focal point which exceeds in size and beauty all other stones of this set.

Originally the tiara consisted of a bandeau with 3 upright aquamarines. Later it was augmented to its present form.

When first made in 1957, the tiara consisted of the three upright rectangular stones (detachable for use as brooches), mounted on a simple platinum band. The large central stone was originally the pendant of the necklace given to The Queen by the President and People of Brazil in 1953 as a Coronation present.


In 1971 the tiara was redesigned and adapted to take four scroll ornaments from an aquamarine and diamond head jewel given to The Queen by the Governor of São Paulo in 1968. The central stone of the first tiara was subsequently returned to the necklace. That statement seems to be incorrect as the tiara looks like it was recently worn by HRH Sophie, Countess of Wessex at the Luxembourg wedding in 2012. However, several people do not think this is the original tiara that HM wore [left]. The Royal Order of Splendor blog has several theories on this tiara worn by Sophie of Wessex.
Source: The Royal Collection