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Opals. UK royal opals
Posted by Beth on January 4, 2021, 7:36 pm
Perhaps the most famous of the UK royal opals was the parure which Queen Victoria owned and which she left to the crown.
According to what we know, the parure consisted of the Oriental circlet tiara, a necklace, pendant earrings and a brooch.
Today the parure is mostly associated with Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother whose signature jewels they were for many years.
Queen Victoria
Even after Prince Albert's death the Queen continued to wear the tiara for Drawing rooms and other grand functions.
According to Twinning, Queen Alexandra had rubies substituted for the opals, and it is in this format that we are most familiar with the jewels.
Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother wearing the parure.
In 1954 the South Australian government presented the Queen with a suite of a necklace and a pair of matching earrings.
the necklace has a huge opal in the front and is illustrated in Field. In my opinion the necklace lacks grace and is not practical.
The earrings are quite nice and dainty and very wearable. the Queen has only worn this suite in full or part once in 1954 in South Australia.
whilst I can assume that the Queen does not like opals as there will have been multiple events where she could have worn the opals at or loaned them out.
Mike
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Perhaps the most famous of the UK royal opals was the parure which Queen Victoria owned and which she left to the crown.
According to what we know, the parure consisted of the Oriental circlet tiara, a necklace, pendant earrings and a brooch.
Today the parure is mostly associated with Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother whose signature jewels they were for many years.
Queen Victoria
Even after Prince Albert's death the Queen continued to wear the tiara for Drawing rooms and other grand functions.
According to Twinning, Queen Alexandra had rubies substituted for the opals, and it is in this format that we are most familiar with the jewels.
Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother wearing the parure.
If the number of times HM has been seen wearing opals is any guide to her attitude to the gemstone, then it seems highly likely that opals do not appeal to her.
Despite reports that HM commented on how lovely the Andamooka suite was
HM has been photographed wearing the necklace only once since she was formally presented with the jewels. I have never seen a photograph of HM wearing the earrings.
QEII in Adelaide in 1954 wearing the Andamooka opal necklace with a pearl tiara and pearl earrings.
One of the things which has always interested me is what is the basic colour of the Andamooka Opal?
There are two different photos in circulation. One suggests a yellow/greenish colour, the other blue. Undoubtedly the different colour could be the result of either different lightning or even the type of colour film used.
Technically opals from Andamooka are classified as white opals, but the colour range seen in such opals is varied.
When the jewels were presented in 1954 the necklace was described as having white opals.
The Andamooka Opal was cut and polished by a Sydney jeweller, John Altman. The firm's website features the Andamooka Opal. Please scroll down to the third item in this page https://www.altmanncherny.com.au/famous
I agree with Mike. The size of the Andamooka Opal doesn't lend itself to being worn in a necklace. In photographs the opal overwhelms the delicate design of the rest of the necklace; perhaps when seen in reality it might look different. But what could be done with such an enormous stone?
Re: Opals. UK royal opals - The Australian RSL opal brooch
Thanks for introducing this brooch altezana Mompox, which I call the Australian RSL opal brooch. In 1947 when the idea of presenting an opal brooch to the then Princess Elizabeth was initially suggested, the organisation was officially named the Returned Sailors' Soldiers' and Airmen's Imperial League; however, even in 1947 it was commonly referred to as the RSL, which is how it is referred to today. I thought I should explain this, as some might get confused by the term RSL in some of the press cuttings from 1947.
The concept of the RSL giving the then Princess an opal brooch initially started as a proposed 21st birthday gift.
This was rejected by a number of branches of the organisation, as some thought it more appropriate to send food for consumption in the UK. For example see --
Newcastle Morning Herald 26 May 1947
Daily Examiner 2 June 1947
Eventually, after QEII's engagement was announced on 9 July 1947 the proposed brooch became a wedding gift, was made, and sent to London.
Maclay Argus 3 January 1948
In reply QEII wrote -
Advertiser 11 February 1948
Yet, despite this, as far as I know, QEII was not seen to wear the brooch in public until her visit to Australia in 2000.
On 27 March 2000 HM visited Parliament House, Canberra and the Australian War Memorial, Canberra to lay a tribute wreath. Choosing the RSL opal brooch for this occasion was symbolic.
27 March 2000
Most commentators seem to believe that the opals are all black opals.
" the blossoms are formed by rare gems from the various opal fields of Australia, the number being representative of the Governmental states of the Commonwealth "
The comment clearly states that the opals have come from "various opal fields". To my way of thinking that means there are other opals apart from black opals in the brooch.
Like most opals this gemstones in this brooch show different colours under different conditions.
For just one example the images below come from the same occasion.
Re: Opals. UK royal opals - Queen Alexandra's major opal jewels
When Queen Alexandra married Edward VII (then Prince of Wales) in 1863, Queen Victoria gave her a suite of opal jewels consisting of drop earrings, a pendant in the shape of a cross, brooches and a bracelet.
1 Queen Victoria's opal wedding gifts to Alexandra.
In the sketch below, the brooches and earrings are seen immediately below the diamond and pearl necklace which Edward VII presented. The pendant is in the centre and the bracelet is on lower left hand corner.
To date none of the various commentators has identified the bracelet given by Queen Victoria; yet, it was identified, described and sketched in the media in 1863.
Another sketch
It is generally accepted that Queen Alexandra did not favour opals, possibly because she had the opals removed from Queen Victoria's opal parure and rubies substituted. Even if Queen Alexandra did not favour opals, she certainly wore these opal jewels on a number of occasions.
The first occasion was for her wedding when she wore the bracelet given by Queen Victoria and the Ladies of Manchester bracelet, which also contained opals.
The Ladies of Manchester bracelet contained opals, emeralds and diamonds. It was described as --
Images of the Ladies of Manchester bracelet.
Queen Alexandra wearing the bracelets on her wedding day.
What do others think? Which bracelet is which? I know the photos are not 100% clear.
Does anyone have sharper images?
Detail
Re: Opals. UK royal opals - Queen Alexandra's major opal jewels
When Queen Alexandra married Edward VII (then Prince of Wales) in 1863, Queen Victoria gave her a suite of opal jewels consisting of drop earrings, a pendant in the shape of a cross, brooches and a bracelet.
1 Queen Victoria's opal wedding gifts to Alexandra.
In the sketch below, the brooches and earrings are seen immediately below the diamond and pearl necklace which Edward VII presented. The pendant is in the centre and the bracelet is on lower left hand corner.
To date none of the various commentators has identified the bracelet given by Queen Victoria; yet, it was identified, described and sketched in the media in 1863.
Another sketch
It is generally accepted that Queen Alexandra did not favour opals, possibly because she had the opals removed from Queen Victoria's opal parure and rubies substituted. Even if Queen Alexandra did not favour opals, she certainly wore these opal jewels on a number of occasions.
The first occasion was for her wedding when she wore the bracelet given by Queen Victoria and the Ladies of Manchester bracelet, which also contained opals.
The Ladies of Manchester bracelet contained opals, emeralds and diamonds. It was described as --
Images of the Ladies of Manchester bracelet.
Queen Alexandra wearing the bracelets on her wedding day.
What do others think? Which bracelet is which? I know the photos are not 100% clear.
Does anyone have sharper images?
Detail
Re: Opals. UK royal opals - Queen Alexandra's major opal jewels
Many thanks Knightship! That painting by David Mossman clearly shows that Queen Alexandra was wearing Queen Victoria's opal bracelet on the left wrist.
Detail from the Mossman painting
Sketch of the bracelet given by Queen Victoria.
That means that what can be seen in the photograph on Queen Alexandra's right wrist has to be the Manchester bracelet.
I have been thinking about these jewels since you started this thread and I've been wondering what happened to them. Getty has some colourised images of the wedding gifts, which shows them in a bit more detail.
I've thought the opals must be among the masses of jewels Queen Alexandra attached to her necklaces and bodices but since the pictures are all in black and white it will be impossible to tell.
It is a bit of a mystery. My own thoughts are that the jewels may yet be in the vaults of Buckingham Palace.
I'll do a separate post soon on a few of the occasions when I have found that Queen Alexandra wore the opals.
I think that The Royal Watcher's idea is highly likely and that Queen Alexandra may have worn the brooches and that, because the photos were originally in black and white, people have assumed all the similar jewels consisted of pearls and diamonds. Wouldn't it be marvellous if we could have a peek inside her wardrobe books?
Queen Alexandra (along with Edward VII) was painted by the Danish artist, Theodore Jensen for a State portrait destined for India. So far I have never been able to find an image of this painting.
1864
Queen Victoria's tendency to delegate her role in formal Drawing Room ceremonies meant that, as the Princess of Wales, Queen Alexandra had to act on Victoria's behalf immediately.
The Times reported on 18 May 1863 that Alexandra had worn opal ornaments for the first Drawing Room she conducted.
Throughout the years prior to becoming Queen, Alexandra was reported to have worn opal ornaments.
Below are just 2 of many examples.
For a Drawing Room in May 1866. The example below is interesting as it states that Queen Alexandra wore opals on a blue velvet head dress.
For a Drawing Room in April 1872
Idea of presenting the then Princess of Wales with an opal necklace
In 1886 during the Indian Colonial Exhibition there were reports of plans to present Queen Alexandra with an opal necklace, but I suspect that nothing came of this proposal.
Did Queen Alexandra have an opal necklace inherited from her mother?
I find the report below intriguing. I wonder if there is any truth to it?
Whether or not Queen Alexandra did or did not like opals is debatable. It may be that during Queen Victoria's life time Alexandra felt duty bound to wear her mother-in-law's gifts as well as those given to her by civic bodies.
I don't think too much can be made of the photo below which shows Queen Alexandra being shown an opal by a Brisbane Jeweller, JR Sankey, at an exhibition in London in 1908. HM may have only been showing a polite interest.
From the State Library of Queensland
Re: Queen Alexandra's opal jewels. Some occasions when worn
All very good research, all we need now is the DoCorn to out some of the hidden treasures so the historical perspective can be looked at. Camilla to my understanding has some will to bring out historical pieces and also very Grand pieces as well. I doubt very much the DoCam will have the same will to rediscover and or protray history like how the DoCorn will do. Camilla has great taste and flare at looking the matriarchal part.
Regards
Dave.
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Apart from her wedding day
Queen Alexandra (along with Edward VII) was painted by the Danish artist, Theodore Jensen for a State portrait destined for India. So far I have never been able to find an image of this painting.
1864
Queen Victoria's tendency to delegate her role in formal Drawing Room ceremonies meant that, as the Princess of Wales, Queen Alexandra had to act on Victoria's behalf immediately.
The Times reported on 18 May 1863 that Alexandra had worn opal ornaments for the first Drawing Room she conducted.
Throughout the years prior to becoming Queen, Alexandra was reported to have worn opal ornaments.
Below are just 2 of many examples.
For a Drawing Room in May 1866. The example below is interesting as it states that Queen Alexandra wore opals on a blue velvet head dress.
For a Drawing Room in April 1872
Idea of presenting the then Princess of Wales with an opal necklace
In 1886 during the Indian Colonial Exhibition there were reports of plans to present Queen Alexandra with an opal necklace, but I suspect that nothing came of this proposal.
Did Queen Alexandra have an opal necklace inherited from her mother?
I find the report below intriguing. I wonder if there is any truth to it?
Whether or not Queen Alexandra did or did not like opals is debatable. It may be that during Queen Victoria's life time Alexandra felt duty bound to wear her mother-in-law's gifts as well as those given to her by civic bodies.
I don't think too much can be made of the photo below which shows Queen Alexandra being shown an opal by a Brisbane Jeweller, JR Sankey, at an exhibition in London in 1908. HM may have only been showing a polite interest.
I find it fascinating how many Opal Jewels Queen Alexandra was given/wore, especially knowing that she thought opals were unlucky. I wonder what prompted that belief, and if it may have something to do with deaths in the royal family?
on January 4, 2021, 7:36 pm
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