The South African diamonds that HM was given for her her 21st are a lot larger in real life than they look on a picture. Also the coronation necklace really looks quite short as if the Queen's neck is quite small and she wears it high up above her collar bones.
The small book was worth buying, even if you have the big one, as it is by a different author and has some different material in it including a good section on the Cullinan and some historic pages about diamond cuts.
--Previous Message-- : Back home now from visiting BP today & I : think I'm all dazzled out! : Surprisingly, due to the Olympics - : including the Ladies Marathon going past the : Palace! - London was much quieter than : usual, because the "general : tourists" were staying away. There was : no queue and we were allowed to go in when : we arrived without waiting for our allotted : time-slot. : : The usual room was set up for the diamonds, : which, like the Fabergé one was dimmed to : almost total darkness, with the cabinets lit : to make the diamonds really sparkle. Set out : "sideways" so that people could : walk along both sides and get the same view : from either side. We went both sides so that : we didn't miss anything! : : The stones were breathtaking of course and I : loved them all! So what did I like seeing : best? I have to say "Granny's : Chips" (Cullinan 3 & 4) just : hypnotizes me every time . To see such huge : stones is the most amazing feeling. The : (literal) depth from front to back on them : is astonishing - not usually able to see it : sideways when it's in the usual cabinet at : the the Queen's Gallery. Even though some of : the Greville stones look large from the : front, they are so much flatter and thinner : than the really superb Cullinan stones that : you realise the superlative quality of those : very special items - even the smaller (ha : ha!!) ones. : Bought the Jubilee book and the small : Diamonds one just about the exhibition - : lovely to add to the collection. : All followed by coffee and cake on the : terrace of course... ;-) : Any questions...? : :
on August 5, 2012, 4:21 pm, in reply to "