Its a Boy: The British Royal Jewels

The baby watch is over and its been reported that the arrival of the newest British Royal is a boy! Being the first child of The Duke and Duchess, not only will newest Royal addition be in line for the throne, but also in line to wear perhaps some of most prized royal possessions!

There are several historically unique pieces which encompass the Crown Jewels, but described below are  six pieces of the Royal Collection, held in trust by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II for her successors and the nation (only two of which shall be worn by the reported most recent royal successor).  

The Imperial State Crown:

The most famous piece in the crown jewels is the Imperial State Crown (the front is left above, the back is center). It is set with over 3,000 stones, including several famous gems: the Second Star of Africa (also known as the Cullinan II, a 317 carat diamond shown in the top right detail above), the Black Prince's Ruby (which is actually a spinel with a small ruby plugging a hole, shown in the center detail), the Stuart Sapphire (bottom above), St. Edward's Sapphire, and pearls belonging to Elizabeth I.

 

The Sovereign's Sceptre:

The Royal Collection includes several famous individual stones, notably  the Cullinan Diamond, which was presented to King Edward VII by the government of South Africa.  The largest diamond ever found, the Cullinan was divided into nine numbered stones, the largest two of which now form part of the Coronation regalia.  They are set into the head of the Sovereign’s Sceptre and the band of the Imperial State Crown. The Cullinan set on the Sovereigns Sceptre can be removed from the Sovereign’s Sceptre and worn as a brooch.   

 

Queen Elizabeth’s Halo Tiara:

 

 

The tiara was made by Cartier in London in 1936 and is formed of a band of 16 graduated scrolls, set with 739 brilliants and 149 baton diamonds, each scroll divided by a graduated brilliant and with a large brilliant at the centre. 

Queen Elizabeth's Crown:

  

Queen Adelaide’s Fringe Necklace:

The Coronation Necklace:

This necklace features 26 of those giant diamonds. Set in silver, gold and platinum, the 25 set in the main necklace are a range of sizes up to 11.25 carats. The 26th diamond is the Lahore Diamond, the 22.48 carat pendant which was previously suspended from the Timur Ruby necklace from India.

For additional information about the royal jewels head over to The Royal Collection These gems are not only beautiful, but have a rich history and distinct gemological allure.