Picture of Duchess of Kent, mother of Q Vic and QEQM both wearing the Kent amethyst brooch with drops.
--Previous Message-- : Dear Arthur, : : Thank you for your kind photos. : : Please note that I ame sure that the 2 : brooches have not been integrated into the : necklace. : : It is not the style of Queen Elizabeth II to : be creative with her jewels. We can also : think that it can be also the pair of hair : combs. : : : So sad that she has not used the pair of : hair combes to create an amethyst : tiara.Perhaps the Doc will do this in the : future. She seems to like this stone. : : Best regards, : : Franck : : --Previous Message-- : According to Leslie Field's book The : Queen's : Jewels , the Kent Amethyst demi-parure : consists of a necklace, three brooches, a : pair of earrings and a pair of hair combs. : As far as I know, we have never seen the : hair combs. : : As for the three brooches, I have the : feeling that the solution is just under our : eyes... i.e. on the pictures of the Queen’s : State visit to Portugal in 1984. : : : : If you look closely at the necklace, you can : see that most of the elements of the : necklace are large oval-shaped amethysts : surrounded by a thin line of round brilliant : diamonds and separated by small diamond : stars. But if you look more closely, you can : see that the two amethysts on the left and : on the right of the central amethyst are : smaller and hexagonal, with a wider diamond : surround in a sunray design... like the : brooch! : : So my guess is that the three brooches are : identical, and that two of them have been : integrated into the necklace, probably to : increase its length. : : As it was frequently the case with jewels in : the 19th century, I guess that all the : elements of the necklace are detachable and : can be hitched and unhitched at will, thanks : to small hooks and loops cleverly hidden in : the metal frame (it is the same, for : instance, with the Cambridge sapphire and : diamond parure, whose necklace and brooches : were worn in several shapes and lengths by : Queen Mary and by Marina and Katherine, : Duchesses of Kent). The three pendants on : the necklace and the three ones on the : brooch are probably removable too. : : I agree it is a beautiful parure – and : definitely a historical one, since it is one : of the few pre-Victorian jewels in the Royal : collection. I would love Queen Elizabeth to : wear it occasionally. A State Visit from (or : to) King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of : Belgium could be a nice opportunity, as the : amethysts would match perfectly with the : purple colour of the sash of the Belgian : Order of Leopold. : : As for the tiara, I would personally prefer : to see this amethyst demi-parure worn with : Queen Alexandra’s Peeresses’ Kokoshnik, or : with Queen Mary’s Fringe Tiara. But any : diamond tiara will be welcome, actually! : : The pictures of the State Visit to Portugal : are the most famous, but Queen Elizabeth II : also wore the Kent Amethyst Demi-Parure : (again with the Girls of Great-Britain and : Ireland Tiara) in 1985 during the State : visit of the President of Mexico. As far as : I know, these are the two only occasions : when the Queen wore the full parure (minus : the hair combs). Note that for the Mexican : State Visit, the Queen did not wear the : brooch (but still had two of them included : in the necklace), and had only one pendant : hooked to the central amethyst of the : necklace. : : : : (sorry, I do not remember who posted this : picture on this board first! Maybe Nellie? : Marianne?) : : : --Previous Message-- : : : --Previous Message-- : : It looks to me like one of them. I think : there is more than one. : : : Nellie, do you happen to have a picture from : the other brooche(s)? Are they similar in : shape and size (like the Q Victoria Bows) or : are they entirely different? : : I know, there's this picture of HM where she : wears something below the 'main-brooch'. But : I'm not sure wether it's a pendant or : another amethyst pinned on HM's sash... : : : : : : :