--Previous Message-- : I just spotted some talk on the Royal Forums : about a brooch HM has worn in March 2014 and : also in October 2013. : : The Opal Spray has the following provenance, : which was supplied to me when I made : enquiries (NOT from BP, by the way) : : The black opal brooch worn by QEII in : Canberra in 2000 [ and more recently in : October 2013 and March 2014 ] was indeed the : wedding gift from the Returned Sailors and : Soldiers & Airmen's Imperial League of : Australia. : An emblem of Australia it is a brooch : representing a spray of our well known : flowering gum composed of Australian gold : and opals. Indicative of a purely Australian : industry - black opal being found nowhere : else in the world - the blossoms are formed : by rare gems from the various opal fields of : Australia, the number being representative : of the Governmental states of the : Commonwealth, the aim of the designers being : to incorporate purely Australian symbols in : a piece of jewellery suitable for such an : auspicious occasion. The casket is of inlaid : Australian blackwood, bearing, in gold, the : badge of the League. : : I am delighted that this gorgeous piece has : made a couple of appearances in recent : months and hope this signals that we can : expect to see it more often. : :
on March 21, 2014, 5:00 pm, in reply to "