Regards,
Dave.
What a great observation OmerH!!
I did a search on some of the photo companies' online libraries --which I know won't give an accurate picture, but only a general indication.
From the Getty archive it would appear that the last year Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother wore the "rubies" was in 1991 for 2 State visit banquets.
What I found interesting about these occasions is that HM did not wear the Oriental circlet tiara; rather she wore the Greville tiara, and initially I assumed that she wore the Greville emerald necklace.
Detail
In 1990 QEQM wore the "ruby" earrings with the Greville diamond necklace.
For anyone who is not aware of my ideas -- I put the word ruby and rubies in inverted commas as I query whether they are rubies.
My other little theory is that these are not Crown property. Twinning is quite clear that the "rubies" were not left to the Crown by Queen Victoria. She left the necklace from which these stones are said to have come to Edward VII as personal property. What she left to the crown was the Oriental circlet tiara set with opals and a necklace, earrings and brooch which were also set with opals. I have always argued that when the "rubies" were substituted for the opals, the necklace would have had to be rebuilt as it is highly unlikely that the "rubies" would have been identical in size and shape to the opals.
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