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Kasper's photos. Jewels at the V & A. Londonderry turquoises and others Posted by Beth on February 7, 2020, 8:35 am Some more of the celebrated Londonderry jewels including the turquoise necklace.

Londonderry turquoises Posted by Beth on February 7, 2020, 1:02 pm, in reply to "Kasper's photos. Jewels at the V & A. Londonderry turquoises and others" I know very little about the Londonderry turquoises. Does the family still own them? Are they worn today? According to various sites the turquoises were purchased by Anne, Marchioness of Londonderry in Austria. Does anyone have more information? In 1927 a series of photos were taken of Edith, Marchioness of Londonderry wearing the necklace and earrings. Some were published in the media. According to some press reports, she wore these jewels and dress to an Eve of Parliament Opening reception held at Londonderry House. She also wore them to the State Opening of Parliament that year. I wonder if she wore the large diamond cross in the same fashion to the Opening of Parliament?

Londonderry pink topaz (?) Posted by Beth on February 7, 2020, 1:34 pm, in reply to "Londonderry turquoises" At the bottom of Kasper's photo in the centre is a large brooch with a pinkish stone. Is it a pink topaz? Does anyone know anything about it, and its provenance? Edith, Marchioness of Londonderry is depicted wearing it in this painting by Charles Williams. (published in 1931)

Re: Londonderry pink topaz (?) Posted by Beth on February 8, 2020, 8:38 am, in reply to "Londonderry pink topaz (?)" I realised that I have another photo showing Edith, Marchioness of Londonderry wearing this large brooch. The photo shows the Marchioness at a Hunt Ball in November 1952. By that time Edith was the Dowager, although her daughter-in-law, Romaine, the wife of the 8th Marquess of Londonderry, had died in December 1951. Whether Edith, as Dowager, lost access to some Londonderry jewels after her son became the incumbent Marquess in 1949 is some thing I don't have any information on. My eyes were drawn to the enormous stone in the bracelet worn by the Marchioness on her right arm. I assume it too had a pink gemstone. Could the bracelet and brooch be part of the jewels which can be seen on the front of the skirt of Frances Anne, Marchioness of Londonderry in the portrait below? Does anyone know what the gemstones are? Pink topazes?

Re: Londonderry pink topaz (?) Posted by 992234177 on February 9, 2020, 2:13 am, in reply to "Re: Londonderry pink topaz (?)" At least some of the stones on her dress are the Russian amethysts.

Re: Londonderry pink topaz (?) Posted by Dave on February 9, 2020, 2:27 am, in reply to "Re: Londonderry pink topaz (?)" The stone at the very end of Francis Ann's dress closest to her feet looks like a fit to the one seen on Edith, Marchioness of Londonderry. I wonder what stone type is her ring? Regards, Dave. Previous Message I realised that I have another photo showing Edith, Marchioness of Londonderry wearing this large brooch. The photo shows the Marchioness at a Hunt Ball in November 1952. By that time Edith was the Dowager, although her daughter-in-law, Romaine, the wife of the 8th Marquess of Londonderry, had died in December 1951. Whether Edith, as Dowager, lost access to some Londonderry jewels after her son became the incumbent Marquess in 1949 is some thing I don't have any information on. My eyes were drawn to the enormous stone in the bracelet worn by the Marchioness on her right arm. I assume it too had a pink gemstone. Could the bracelet and brooch be part of the jewels which can be seen on the front of the skirt of Frances Anne, Marchioness of Londonderry in the portrait below? Does anyone know what the gemstones are? Pink topazes?

Re: Londonderry pink topaz . It is a pink topaz. Posted by Beth on February 9, 2020, 9:37 am, in reply to "Re: Londonderry pink topaz (?)" Well spotted Dave! According to the V & A's entry for the 1831 painting of Frances Anne, Marchioness of Londonderry by Dubois-Drahonet, the large brooch in the centre near the hemline of the Marchioness' dress is the one on display. It is a pink topaz, and is the one we could see in Kasper's photo. See V & A http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1295680/portrait-of-frances-anne-vane-oil-painting-dubois-drahonet-alexandre/ The pink topaz was given to Frances Anne by Tsar Alexander. The brooch with the yellow central gemstone in Kasper's photo was also a gift from the Tsar, and it too can be seen in the Dubois-Drahonet painting. The V & A has this superb close up of the jewels on the front of the Marchioness' dress, which allows us to identify many of the jewels. We can see elements of the turquoise suite as well as some of the amethysts.

Re: Londonderry pink topaz . It is a pink topaz. Posted by Kasper on February 11, 2020, 7:02 am, in reply to "Re: Londonderry pink topaz . It is a pink topaz." This is so interesting, i wasnt aware of this. But it clearly looks like the turquoises from your picture and My picture are the same. Unfortunatly nothing is mentioned in the museums jewellery book about the Londonderry jewels. But they do have a huge montre to show of in. And beautiful the are. The stomacer is just soo long. And the ametyst in the diadem is truly big and scratced. They have had quite a life i guess. Previous Message Well spotted Dave! According to the V & A's entry for the 1831 painting of Frances Anne, Marchioness of Londonderry by Dubois-Drahonet, the large brooch in the centre near the hemline of the Marchioness' dress is the one on display. It is a pink topaz, and is the one we could see in Kasper's photo. See V & A http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1295680/portrait-of-frances-anne-vane-oil-painting-dubois-drahonet-alexandre/ The pink topaz was given to Frances Anne by Tsar Alexander. The brooch with the yellow central gemstone in Kasper's photo was also a gift from the Tsar, and it too can be seen in the Dubois-Drahonet painting. The V & A has this superb close up of the jewels on the front of the Marchioness' dress, which allows us to identify many of the jewels. We can see elements of the turquoise suite as well as some of the amethysts.

Re: Londonderry turquoises Posted by 992234177 on February 8, 2020, 1:46 am, in reply to "Londonderry turquoises" it looks to me like she is wearing fancy dress costume. The way the dress is puffed on the skirt and the fact it is short, also the collar and the waist line look wrong.

Re: Londonderry turquoises Posted by Beth on February 8, 2020, 8:06 am, in reply to "Re: Londonderry turquoises" I agree 992234177. The dress looks very odd, as everything seems out of proportion. I have noticed that, during the middle of the 1920s, there was a tendency for peeresses to wear shorter dresses to the Opening of Parliament. Sometimes the hemlines were just below the knee. Perhaps Edith, Marchioness of Londonderry was trying to balance fashion with the type of dress the jewels demand. What ever the rationale behind the Marchioness' choice, the experiment wasn't successful in my opinion.

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