Queen Camilla offered us a nice Christmas double-gift, by wearing recently two unknown brooches:
December 14, 2023 in Bristol, England: Queen Camilla during a visit to meet children, families and staff at Childrens Hospice South West's (CHSW) Charlton Farm children's hospice. (Photo by Jacob King - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
The brooch depicts a diamond dove with ruby eyes, wearing in its beak an olive tree in emeralds. Has anyone seen this brooch before?
December 25, 2023 in Sandringham, Norfolk: Christmas Day service at St Mary Magdalene Church. (Photos by Mark Cuthbert/UK Press and Stephen Pond via Getty Images)
Queen Camilla matched her camel coat with a brooch of antique, neo-medieval style, with five stones of yellow colour forming a cross, with small diamond fleurs-de-lys interspersed, and three diamonds atop each of the yellow stones forming the arms of the cross.
The plot thickens, because, on January 18th, 2004, Queen Elizabeth wore a brooch looking strikingly alike Queen Camilla's one - except that Queen Elizabeth II's brooch looked bigger, and that its coloured stones were blue!
In first thought, I considered it could be the same brooch: the difference of size could have been deceitful, as Queen Camilla is taller than Queen Elizabeth II was, which could make Camilla's brooch look smaller. And the difference of colour could come from the "coloured" stones, which would actually be more transparent than really coloured, and would merely refract the colour of the fabric below. But after further reflection, I now think these are two different brooches. Queen Camilla's brooch have stones of a distinctive yellow hue, which are not exactly her (pale brown) coat colour, so the stones are not just reflecting the fabric's colour. Camilla's yellow stones also look smaller than Queen Elizabeth II's blue stones. And finally, the triplet of diamonds at the end of each arm of the cross is made, in Queen Elizabeth II's brooch, of a big central diamond and two smaller side diamonds, whereas Queen Camilla's brooch has diamonds of a more even size (not totally even, but the size difference is not as big as in Queen Elizabeth II's brooch).
Finally, I remind you of this picture (first posted, in smaller size, by PJ Kiser on this message board in December 2014). It depicts Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck, Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne, mother of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, and grandmother of Queen Elizabeth II. She wears, pinned on her corsage, a brooch which also looks similar to the two brooches mentioned above (judging from the size, it looks closer to Camilla's brooch, but as the picture is in black and white, it is difficult to be very assertive):
Edit: another very similar brooch worn by the Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne, with the cross shape, and the interpersed diamond fleur-de-lys... but this time with square stones (and visibly darker, so possibly rubies or emeralds?):
Queen Camilla offered us a nice Christmas double-gift, by wearing recently two unknown brooches:
December 14, 2023 in Bristol, England: Queen Camilla during a visit to meet children, families and staff at Childrens Hospice South West's (CHSW) Charlton Farm children's hospice. (Photo by Jacob King - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
The brooch depicts a diamond dove with ruby eyes, wearing in its beak an olive tree in emeralds. Has anyone seen this brooch before?
December 25, 2023 in Sandringham, Norfolk: Christmas Day service at St Mary Magdalene Church . (Photos by Mark Cuthbert/UK Press and Stephen Pond via Getty Images)
Queen Camilla matched her camel coat with a brooch of antique, neo-medieval style, with five stones of yellow colour forming a cross, with small diamond fleurs-de-lys interspersed, and three diamonds atop each of the yellow stones forming the arms of the cross.
The plot thickens, because, on January 18th, 2004, Queen Elizabeth wore a brooch looking strikingly alike Queen Camilla's one - except that Queen Elizabeth II's brooch looked bigger, and that its coloured stones were blue!
In first thought, I considered it could be the same brooch: the difference of size could have been deceitful, as Queen Camilla is taller than Queen Elizabeth II was, which could make Camilla's brooch look smaller. And the difference of colour could come from the "coloured" stones, which would actually be more transparent than really coloured, and would merely refract the colour of the fabric below. But after further reflection, I now think these are two different brooches. Queen Camilla's brooch have stones of a distinctive yellow hue, which are not exactly her (pale brown) coat colour, so the stones are not just reflecting the fabric's colour. Camilla's yellow stones also look smaller than Queen Elizabeth II's blue stones. And finally, the triplet of diamonds at the end of each arm of the cross is made, in Queen Elizabeth II's brooch, of a big central diamond and two smaller side diamonds, whereas Queen Camilla's brooch has diamonds of a more even size (not totally even, but the size difference is not as big as in Queen Elizabeth II's brooch).
Finally, I remind you of this picture (first posted, in smaller size, by PJ Kiser on this message board in December 2014). It depicts Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck, Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne, mother of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, and grandmother of Queen Elizabeth II. She wears, pinned on her corsage, a brooch which also looks similar to the two brooches mentioned above (judging from the size, it looks closer to Camilla's brooch, but as the picture is in black and white, it is difficult to be very assertive):
Edit: another very similar brooch worn by the Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne, with the cross shape, and the interpersed diamond fleur-de-lys... but this time with square stones (and visibly darker, so possibly rubies or emeralds?): (source: https://twitter.com/JaneDismore/status/1673638723618045957 )
Thank you for this, Arthur, and for reminding us of the post by PJ Kiser. British Royal Jewels on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/britishroyaljewels/) read your post, and has since found another pice of the puzzle, confirming this is most likely from the late Countess of Strathmore. In newspaper clippings of her will, she is quoted leaving ´my yellow diamond cross´ to her daughter, the Queen.
I´m surprised the late Queen Mother was never pictured wearing this brooch from her mother - especially as it now appears to have yellow diamonds.
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Queen Camilla offered us a nice Christmas double-gift, by wearing recently two unknown brooches:
December 14, 2023 in Bristol, England: Queen Camilla during a visit to meet children, families and staff at Childrens Hospice South West's (CHSW) Charlton Farm children's hospice. (Photo by Jacob King - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
The brooch depicts a diamond dove with ruby eyes, wearing in its beak an olive tree in emeralds. Has anyone seen this brooch before?
December 25, 2023 in Sandringham, Norfolk: Christmas Day service at St Mary Magdalene Church . (Photos by Mark Cuthbert/UK Press and Stephen Pond via Getty Images)
Queen Camilla matched her camel coat with a brooch of antique, neo-medieval style, with five stones of yellow colour forming a cross, with small diamond fleurs-de-lys interspersed, and three diamonds atop each of the yellow stones forming the arms of the cross.
The plot thickens, because, on January 18th, 2004, Queen Elizabeth wore a brooch looking strikingly alike Queen Camilla's one - except that Queen Elizabeth II's brooch looked bigger, and that its coloured stones were blue!
In first thought, I considered it could be the same brooch: the difference of size could have been deceitful, as Queen Camilla is taller than Queen Elizabeth II was, which could make Camilla's brooch look smaller. And the difference of colour could come from the "coloured" stones, which would actually be more transparent than really coloured, and would merely refract the colour of the fabric below. But after further reflection, I now think these are two different brooches. Queen Camilla's brooch have stones of a distinctive yellow hue, which are not exactly her (pale brown) coat colour, so the stones are not just reflecting the fabric's colour. Camilla's yellow stones also look smaller than Queen Elizabeth II's blue stones. And finally, the triplet of diamonds at the end of each arm of the cross is made, in Queen Elizabeth II's brooch, of a big central diamond and two smaller side diamonds, whereas Queen Camilla's brooch has diamonds of a more even size (not totally even, but the size difference is not as big as in Queen Elizabeth II's brooch).
Finally, I remind you of this picture (first posted, in smaller size, by PJ Kiser on this message board in December 2014). It depicts Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck, Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne, mother of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, and grandmother of Queen Elizabeth II. She wears, pinned on her corsage, a brooch which also looks similar to the two brooches mentioned above (judging from the size, it looks closer to Camilla's brooch, but as the picture is in black and white, it is difficult to be very assertive):
Edit: another very similar brooch worn by the Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne, with the cross shape, and the interpersed diamond fleur-de-lys... but this time with square stones (and visibly darker, so possibly rubies or emeralds?): (source: https://twitter.com/JaneDismore/status/1673638723618045957 )
Thank you, Torkel, for mentioning the information provided by "British Royal Jewels" Instagram account - notably that the yellow stones are yellow diamonds and not yellow topazes, and that this brooch was bequeathed to Queen Elizabeth by her own mother.
And thanks to the owner of this Instagram account for refering to my post (though the real discovery was made by PJKiser, and not by me!).
Previous Message
Thank you for this, Arthur, and for reminding us of the post by PJ Kiser. British Royal Jewels on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/britishroyaljewels/) read your post, and has since found another pice of the puzzle, confirming this is most likely from the late Countess of Strathmore. In newspaper clippings of her will, she is quoted leaving ´my yellow diamond cross´ to her daughter, the Queen.
I´m surprised the late Queen Mother was never pictured wearing this brooch from her mother - especially as it now appears to have yellow diamonds.
Previous Message
Queen Camilla offered us a nice Christmas double-gift, by wearing recently two unknown brooches:
December 14, 2023 in Bristol, England: Queen Camilla during a visit to meet children, families and staff at Childrens Hospice South West's (CHSW) Charlton Farm children's hospice. (Photo by Jacob King - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
The brooch depicts a diamond dove with ruby eyes, wearing in its beak an olive tree in emeralds. Has anyone seen this brooch before?
December 25, 2023 in Sandringham, Norfolk: Christmas Day service at St Mary Magdalene Church . (Photos by Mark Cuthbert/UK Press and Stephen Pond via Getty Images)
Queen Camilla matched her camel coat with a brooch of antique, neo-medieval style, with five stones of yellow colour forming a cross, with small diamond fleurs-de-lys interspersed, and three diamonds atop each of the yellow stones forming the arms of the cross.
The plot thickens, because, on January 18th, 2004, Queen Elizabeth wore a brooch looking strikingly alike Queen Camilla's one - except that Queen Elizabeth II's brooch looked bigger, and that its coloured stones were blue!
In first thought, I considered it could be the same brooch: the difference of size could have been deceitful, as Queen Camilla is taller than Queen Elizabeth II was, which could make Camilla's brooch look smaller. And the difference of colour could come from the "coloured" stones, which would actually be more transparent than really coloured, and would merely refract the colour of the fabric below. But after further reflection, I now think these are two different brooches. Queen Camilla's brooch have stones of a distinctive yellow hue, which are not exactly her (pale brown) coat colour, so the stones are not just reflecting the fabric's colour. Camilla's yellow stones also look smaller than Queen Elizabeth II's blue stones. And finally, the triplet of diamonds at the end of each arm of the cross is made, in Queen Elizabeth II's brooch, of a big central diamond and two smaller side diamonds, whereas Queen Camilla's brooch has diamonds of a more even size (not totally even, but the size difference is not as big as in Queen Elizabeth II's brooch).
Finally, I remind you of this picture (first posted, in smaller size, by PJ Kiser on this message board in December 2014). It depicts Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck, Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne, mother of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, and grandmother of Queen Elizabeth II. She wears, pinned on her corsage, a brooch which also looks similar to the two brooches mentioned above (judging from the size, it looks closer to Camilla's brooch, but as the picture is in black and white, it is difficult to be very assertive):
Edit: another very similar brooch worn by the Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne, with the cross shape, and the interpersed diamond fleur-de-lys... but this time with square stones (and visibly darker, so possibly rubies or emeralds?): (source: https://twitter.com/JaneDismore/status/1673638723618045957 )
on December 30, 2023, 3:52 pm
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