I just think Sonja’s statement is interesting, because there are several gold tiaras in the NRF:
Duchess Pauline’s gold bandeau/parure is owned by Princess Astrid, but the whereabouts of the Swedish pearl parure and Queen Maud’s gold circlet bandeau is unknown.
Could it be that the golden tiara remained with the late King Olav and whre onlyionherited by King Harald in 1991 and then it was used to create the new modern gold tiara?
I agree Eiriksn! Queen Sonja would have worn one of Queen Alexandra’s gold tiaras if they were in the Norwegian vault, but I don’t think they are.
When Sonja spoke to the press about the creation of the modern gold parure (by jeweller Millie Behrens) in the 1990s, she stated that she wanted a gold tiara because “she did not have one at her disposal”.
I’m just speculating of course, but Sonja’s statement also makes me wonder if the diamond and Swedish pearl parure (with a heavy gold tiara frame) inherited by CP Martha from the Dowager Duchess of Dalarne in 1914, went to Princess Astrid (who wears the brooch), or the late Princess Ragnhild.
In an interview with the Norwegian magazine KK in 2013 princess Martha Louise mentions the jewels she has received as gifts, like those from her grandfather and for her confirmation. She adds that some of the jewels she has been gifted are set with inherited stones and that those stones were set in new jewelry especially for her.
Perhaps some of the jewels we are familiar with, like her tiara, diamond and pearl necklace, pearl choker and moonstone (?) necklace and earrings are actually set with stones inherited from Queen Alexandra and Queen Maud?
She also has a pair of earrings with drop pearls and diamond chandelier earrings that I don’t think has been identified.
I also wonder what happened to the group of “ancient Scandinavian ornaments in gold” given to Alexandra for her wedding by Landgraf Wilhelm of Hesse and the inhabitants of Laaland and Falster (mentioned in “Tiaras, a history of splendor”). Given her love for her own gold tiara, I’m sure queen Sonja would have taken some of those out for a spin if they were in the Norwegian vault 😊.
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