That makes sense to me. Afterall, the copy needs to be very convincing!
--Previous Message-- : No idea. Im guessing you would have to use : synthetic stones, but the real skill is : still in the making of the tiara so a : convincing copy won't be cheap as it : involves highly skilled labour to make a : tiara. : : --Previous Message-- : : : --Previous Message-- : Beatrix as queen was rumoured to have : several : copies made of her tiaras. The main reason : was that the copy was much lighter than the : original. Beatrix suffered from migraines : for a while and did not want to forsake her : duty. A lighter tiara helped either to : prevent a headache or when she did have one : made it easier to still forfill her duty. : : --Previous Message-- : Good theory, but aren't some of the nobility : and minor Royals fairly hard up? And aren't : copies quite expensive to have good ones : made? : So maybe they couldn't afford to have copies : made ? : (And wouldn't you be able to tell as they : wouldn't sparkle so much ?!) : : Just some random thoughts : : --Previous Message-- : A relative of mine, whose husband lost his : money, also had her jewels copied and - what : I thought hilarious - took off the labels of : her old Paris designer clothes and stitched : them inside her off-the-rack coats. : "You don't know those women darling, : they are so mean! During a round of bridge, : you can be sure they leave the table to : spend a penny, just to have a quick peek : inside your coat, to see where it's : from..." : : --Previous Message-- : It would surprise me if this was not done : more : often! : I remember a story years ago, the widow of a : member of the Ford family was robbed in her : home, some of her jewels were stolen. I : don't remember the exact dollar amount in : value but it was in the millions. What got : me is that she said the jewels were not : insured, why? She couldn't afford the : premiums! : : --Previous Message-- : : Thanks Glenn for accepting my invitiation to : dicuss this aspect of royal jewels. : I agree that the security diminishes as the : royal is further from the centre of royal : life. : If copies are made I would think that would : be something of a secret between the : owner/wearer and their jewellery firm. : : : --Previous Message-- : What you mention here (security) only goes : for : Kings, Queens and immediate royals - you can : be a minor royal - who is short of cash and : without security persons following you : around. Perhaps these royals might see : having copies made as a way of saving money : in the long run on insurance policies. : : We also know that some aristocratic families : had copies made in order for the original : jewels to stay in the bank vault. : : : : : : : : : : : : If you had to make an educated guess how : much would a superior copy of say the tiara : that Maxima wore to the inauguration of her : husband cost? : : :