The Jewels of Queen Marie of Romania

Today mark the 150th Anniversary of the Birth of Queen Marie of Romania, who was born on this day in 1875! Queen Victoria’s granddaughter who became the popular Queen of the Balkan Nation, ensuring massive territorial gains after the First World War, Queen Marie received and inherited many magnificent Heirlooms which were lost in Revolutionary Russia but were later replaced with new Commissions and spectacular Royal Acquisitions from her less fortunate sisters!

Vladimir Sapphire Kokoshnik Tiara

Origin:  Created by Cartier for the Grand Duchess Vladimir in 1909 using Sapphire from Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, it was smuggled out of Russia and sold by Grand Duchess Victoria Melita to her sister, Queen Marie, in 1920

Notable Appearances: Coronation of King Ferdinand and Queen Marie of Romania in 1922, De Lazlo Portrait in 1924, American Tour in 1926, and King George V’s Silver Jubilee Ball in 1935

Fate: Inherited by her youngest daughter, Princess Ileana of Romania, and after making daring escapes from Austria, Romania and Argentina it was sold to Cartier in America in the 1950. Its current whereabouts are unknown.

Diamond Fringe Tiara

Origin: A Wedding Gift to Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna in 1874, inherited by Princess Beatrice, Duchess of Galliera, in 1920 and sold to her sister, Queen Marie, in 1933

Notable Appearances: De Lazlo Portrait in 1936 and La Petite Entente Banquet at the Royal Palace of Bucharest in 1936

Fate: Inherited by her second daughter, Queen Marie of Yugoslavia, and sold at Sotheby’s in London in 1960. Its current whereabouts are unknown.

Romanian Massin Tiara

Origin: A Gift from the Romania Aristocratic Ladies Association to Princess Elisabeth of Wied when she married reigning Prince Carol of Romania in 1869, passed along to Crown Princess Marie in the latter 1900s

Notable Appearances: Portraits in the 1910s

Fate: Sent to Russia for safekeeping during the First World War and lost during the Russian Revolution

Cartier Pearl Tiara

Origin: Created by Cartier from a Faberge Pearl Tiara inherited by Queen Marie from her mother, Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna, in 1922

Notable Appearances: American Tour in 1926, Wedding Ball of Princess Ileana of Romania and Archduke Anton of Austria in 1931

Fate: Likely inherited by her eldest daughter, Queen Elisabeth of Greece, its current whereabouts are unknown.

Diamond Loop Tiara

Origin: A Wedding Gift from her mother, Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna, Duchess of Edinburgh, in 1893

Notable Appearances: The  Wedding of her cousin, the Grand Duke of Hesse, to her sister, Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, in 1894, the Wedding of the Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg and her sister, Princess Alexandra of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, in 1896, the Coronation of her cousin, Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, and Empress Alexandra Feodrovna in Moscow in 1896, and the Wedding of the Duke of Schleswig-Holstein and Princess Dorothea of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in 1898

Fate: Sent to Russia for safekeeping during the First World War and lost during the Russian Revolution

Sapphire Bandeau

Origin: A Wedding Gift from her groom, Crown Prince Ferdinand of Romania, in 1893

Notable Appearances: The Coronation of her cousins, Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, and Empress Alexandra Feodrovna, in Moscow in 1896.

Fate: Sent to Russia for safekeeping during the First World War and lost during the Russian Revolution

Turquoise Tiara

Origin: A Wedding Gift from her father, the Duke of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg und Gotha, in 1893

Notable Appearances: Portrait in 1890s

Fate: Redesigned into a new Tiara by  by Kreuter & Co, Hanau in 1904 but sent to Russia for safekeeping during the First World War and lost during the Russian Revolution

Cartier Sapphire Pendant

Origin: Acquired from Cartier by King Ferdinand in 1922, for Fr. 1,275,000

Notable Appearances: Coronation of King Ferdinand and Queen Marie of Romania in 1922, De Lazlo Portrait in 1924,

Fate: Later belonged to to Queen Frederica of Greece and currently  on display in the Cartier Exhibition at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London for only the next few weeks.

Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna’s Pearl Brooch

Origin: Inherited from her mother, Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg und Gotha and Edinburgh, in 1920

Notable Appearances: De Lazlo Portrait in 1924, Wedding of Princess Ileana of Romania in 1931, Wedding Ball of Princess Ileana of Romania and Archduke Anton of Austria in 1931

Fate: Inherited by her youngest daughter, Princess Ileana of Romania, and likely remains with her descendants

Cartier Diamond Sautoir

Origin: Acquired from Cartier by King Ferdinand in 1922, for Fr. 1,275,000

Notable Appearances: Coronation of King Ferdinand and Queen Marie of Romania in 1922, De Lazlo Portrait in 1924, La Petite Entente Banquet at the Royal Palace of Bucharest in 1936

Fate: Inherited by King Michael of Romania and worn by Queen Helen and Queen Anne before being dismantled

Vladimir Sapphire Kokoshnik