In 1896 when this photo was taken neither Queen Mary or the Grand Duchess Vladimir could have ever envisaged the events of 1917 and that Queen Mary would subsequently acquire the Grand Duchess' pearl and diamond tiara.

But I wonder if this encounter (and possibly others) would have piqued Queen Mary's interest.

The other thing which I noticed in this photo is that it looks as if the Grand Duchess had followed the contemporary fashion and had the Vladimir tiara mounted on a coronet frame. What do others think?