The late Queen's most famous crown, the Diamond Diadem, will be among more than 300 spectacular pieces of royal jewellery displayed in a new exhibition at Buckingham Palace, marking the first ever showcase exploring jewels, diamonds and crowns worn by monarchs including Henry VIII and Queen Victoria.
Titled Royal Jewellery: From Coronations to Keepsakes, the unprecedented display will feature pieces dating back to the 16th century. Curators say it will explore the human stories behind the jewels of "love and loss, power and politics, family and faith".
Historic Pieces on Display
The Diamond Diadem, made for George IV's extravagant coronation and later immortalised in coins, banknotes and stamps bearing the image of Elizabeth II, will be one of the most famous pieces on show in the King's Gallery. Visitors will also see Queen Victoria's Small Diamond Crown, which was placed on her coffin during her lying in state.
The cufflinks said to have been worn by Charles I on the scaffold for his execution in 1649 and handed to his loyal supporters will be on public display for the first time.
Jewels of Queens and Consorts
At the heart of the exhibition will be a collection of jewellery associated with every Queen and consort from Queen Charlotte to Elizabeth II, tracing changing fashions from Georgian splendour and Victorian sentimentality to Art Deco styles and bold mid-century designs.
Caroline de Guitaut and Kathryn Jones, co-curators of the exhibition, said: "This unprecedented exhibition will bring together some of the most important and spectacular royal jewels in British history, many never exhibited publicly before."
Rare and Personal Keepsakes
Items will include Queen Charlotte's set of garnet jewels, newly connected to George III's wife through recent research, as well as Queen Alexandra's gold articulated serpent bracelet, set with diamonds and a black pearl. A Faberge aquamarine and diamond pendant given to the future Elizabeth II by her grandmother Queen Mary will also be among the pieces, alongside the Greville emerald and diamond necklace worn by Elizabeth II.
Moving keepsakes associated with Queen Victoria and Prince Albert will include Victoria's first ring – a flowerhead set with five emeralds forming the petals around a single ruby – and the diamond and sapphire brooch Albert gave Victoria on the eve of their wedding. There will also be a bracelet set with pebbles collected by Victoria and Albert on their first journey alone together, a thistle brooch incorporating their eldest daughter Princess Victoria's first milk tooth, removed by Albert himself, and Victoria's mourning ring featuring Albert's photograph after he died at the age of 42 in 1861.
The Crown Jewels will not feature in the exhibition and will remain on show at the Tower of London. Tickets will be available to Royal Collection Trust e-newsletter subscribers from October 28 and to the general public from November 3. The exhibition will open at The King's Gallery, Buckingham Palace, in London on June 25, 2027 and run for nine months.
