I was at the exhibition on Tuesday and similarly I was more fascinated by the fittings and arrangements of the pieces for adaptation;
The Girls of Great Britain tiara has four screw fittings on the interior to attach the bandeau to the mainframe, and the claw set stones that feature above the decorative elements have small screw holes for the upright parts to be connected into...
The Durbar tiara has a very interesting fitment behind the central element one presumes for the adaptation of different central elements to be added at will, most interestingly, this connector is in gold whereas the frame is in Platinum... I was happy to see this fitment still in situ as that opens up the possibility for subsequent wearers to add and enhance the tiara with significant jewels.
Cullinan III and IV is breathaking, and the setting for such impressive stones is so very delicate and light... it looked to be created from wire rather than as I assumed pierced from a sheet metal setting. Would love to hear what others thought...
I smiled to read the comment about the Williamson brooch, there were a few older ladies following my directly and when the opportunity for them to move ahead in the queue arose one lady said "This young man is giving me so much information... I want to hear more" (as I was explaining to my partner the reasons why and wherefore etc); so much more pleasurable than the last Buckingham Palace exhibition where an old battleaxe jabbed me cruelly in the shoulder and told me I was taking too long to view the pieces. My response? I politely explained that as I'd paid as much as her, and that there was as many people in front as behind she should perhaps use her time to look more closely at the masterpieces she was so keen to overlook!
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