The late Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon would have turned 87 next week. As the only sister of Queen Elizabeth II, she attended countless glittering events from the 1940s until her death in 2002. In honour of her birthday, we are featuring her trademark Poltimore Tiara-
Poltimore Tiara | Turquoise Parure | Cartier Halo Tiara | Lotus Flower Tiara | Snowdon Floral Tiara | Queen Mary’s Diamond Lozenge Bandeau | Teck Diamond Hoop Necklace
Composed of diamonds of clusters and diamond scrolls, the Poltimore Tiara was made by Garrard around 1870 for the second Baroness Poltimore, wife of the second Baron Poltimore. The Tiara can be disassembled to be worn as a Necklace and also into eleven brooches.
Designed as a graduated line of cushion-shaped and old-cut diamond clusters alternating with diamond-set scroll motifs, each surmounted by old-cut diamond terminals, to the collet-set diamond line, mounted in silver and gold, circa 1870, 19.2 cm. maximum diameter, convertible to a necklace and eleven brooches, with screwdriver and brooch fittings, in fitted blue leather case
The third Baroness Poltimore notably wore the magnificent Poltimore Tiara for the Coronation of King George V and Queen Mary at Westminster Abbey in 1911, in an image that has often erroneously been described as the second Baroness at the Coronation of King Edward VII in 1902.
The Poltimore Tiara was also worn by Lady Stucley, daughter of the 4th Baron Poltimore, for a Coronation Gala Performance at Covent Garden, following the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953.
In January 1959, the Poltimore Tiara was sold at public auction for £5,500 as ‘a highly important tiara’ belonging to the Right Honourable Lord Poltimore, the fourth Baron Poltimore. On the advice of Baron Plunket, the Tiara was acquired by Princess Margaret.
Princess Margaret debuted the Poltimore Tiara for a Gala Performance during the Iranian State Visit to Britain in May 1959, before wearing the piece as a Necklace and Brooch with the Lotus Flower Tiara on a visit to Portugal in June and at a Gala in London in July.
The Poltimore Necklace was also worn for a Gala Performance at Covent Garden right after the announcement of her Engagement to Antony Armstrong-Jones in 1960, as well as for a Gala Performance during the French State Visit to Britain in 1960.
Most iconically, Princess Margaret wore the Poltimore Tiara at her Wedding to Antony Armstrong Jones at Westminster Abbey, paired with a dreamy Norman Hartnell gown.
Later that year, Princess Margaret wore the Poltimore Tiara at Wedding Ball of King Baudouin and Doña Fabiola de Mora y Aragón at the Royal Palace of Brussles and it was also worn for the Belgian State Visit in 1963, in Denmark in 1964, in America in 1965, and the State Opening of Parliament in 1967 in addition to numerous official and less formal portraits, among them an intimate photograph taken by Lord Snowdon of the Princess wearing the Tiara in the bath in 1962.
The Poltimore Tiara had become a trademark piece of Princess Margaret by the 1970s and 80s, when it was worn for the Japanese State Visit in 1971, Swedish State Visit in 1975, the Silver Jubilee Gala at Covent Garden in 1977, in the Philippines in 1980, Oman State Visit in 1982, Dutch State Visit in 1982, the American State Visit in 1982, and the Spanish State Visit in 1986, among many other occasions.
Princess Margaret also frequently wore the Poltimore Necklace and Brooches on several occasions, among them a Banquet at Nepalese Embassy in 1960, the Jamaican Independence Celebrations in 1962, and on an Italian State Visit in 1969, in addition to when Princess Margaret wore elements of the Poltimore Tiara with the Diamond Fleur-de-Lys Brooch as a headdress for Lord Glenconner’s 60th Birthday Party on the Island of Mustique in 1986.
Princess Margaret continued to wear the Poltimore Tiara regularly into the 1990s, with the Polish State Visit to Britain in 1991, Brunei State Visit to Britain in 1992, and Heads of State Banquet at Guildhall in 1995 among numerous State Openings of Parliament and other gala occasions into her final years.
After Princess Margaret’s death in 2002, while some of her jewels remained with her children; the 2nd Earl of Snowdon and Lady Sarah Chatto, many of them were sold at the famous 2006 Christie’s Auction, with the Poltimore Tiara headlining the sale and fetching GBP 926,400, many times over the estimated GBP 150,000 – GBP 200,000. The Tiara was purchased by a ‘private Asian buyer’ and has not been seen since.
This famous piece of royal history made the headlines a second time in 2006 when it went on display at Christie’s London. Part of a collection of 800 of Princess Margaret’s jewels that were set to be auctioned by Christie’s, the tiara achieved the second-highest price of the night, selling for £926,400, almost five times its high estimate, to an anonymous buyer. Disappearing from the public eye as quickly as it arrived, its current whereabouts is unknown.
As such an iconic symbol of Princess Margaret, the Poltimore Tiara has often been recreated for film and television, among them for Netflix’s The Crown.
Poltimore Tiara | Turquoise Parure | Cartier Halo Tiara | Lotus Flower Tiara | Snowdon Floral Tiara | Queen Mary’s Diamond Lozenge Bandeau | Teck Diamond Hoop Necklace
Poltimore Tiara
Turquoise Parure
Cartier Halo Tiara
Lotus Flower Tiara
Snowdon Floral Tiara
Empress Maria Feodorovna’s Sapphire Bandeau
Teck Diamond Hoop Necklace
Diamond Earrings
Ruby Girandole Earrings
Emerald Earrings
Greville Pearl Earrings
Sapphire Earrings
Diamond Star Earrings
Diamond and Pearl Riviere
Star Brooch
Cartier Rose Brooch
Ear-of-Wheat Brooch
Floral Spray Brooch
Diamond Fleur-de-Lys Brooch
Cartier Ruby Flower Brooch
Snowdon Diamond Flower Tiara
Greville Pearl Earrings
Diamond Star Earrings
Queen Mary’s Diamond and Pearl Riviere
Princess Margaret’s Diamond Rivière
Sapphire Earrings
Emerald Earrings
Ear-of-Wheat Brooch
Star Brooch
Floral Spray Brooch
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Composed of of diamonds in clusters and scroll motifs, the Poltimore Tiara was made by Garrards in the 1870s for Florence, Lady Poltimore, wife of the second Baron Poltimore. The large scrolls can be worn as brooches, and the clusters can also form a necklace.
In 1902, Lady Poltimore wore her tiara at the Coronation of King Edward VII in Westminster Abbey.
In 1953, at a Royal Opera Performance held on the eve of the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, the Poltimore Tiara was worn by an unknown lady, probably Lady Stucley, daughter of the 4th Baron Poltimore.
In 1959, Baron Poltimore auctioned the Tiara for £5,500, when it was bought by Princess Margaret, who wore it for the first time at an Opera Performance for the Shah of Iran.
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The most famous occasion when Princess Margaret wore the Tiara was at her 1960 wedding to Antony Armstrong Jones at Westminster Abbey, when she paired the Tiara with her Norman Hartnell gown.
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The Tiara became a favourite of Princess Margaret, who wore it as a necklace, and even in the bath. It suited her large 60s bouffant, and was the largest tiara in her collection.
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Princess Margaret continued to wear the Poltimore Tiara during her separation and after her divorce.
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A famous appearance was this portrait, taken in the 1980s.
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The Poltimore Tiara, already a trademark, was worn to many of Princess Margaret’s final tiara events, including the Head’s of State Banquet for VE Day in 1995 and the State Opening of Parliament in 1996.
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After her death in 2002, the Poltimore Tiara was inherited by her children, Lord Linley and Lady Sarah Chatto, who had to sell some of her jewels in order to pay the inheritance taxes on her estate. The Tiara headlined the sale, and was auctioned for £926,400 ($1,704,576) to a ‘private Asian buyer’. It hasn’t been seen since.
Poltimore Tiara
Turquoise Parure
Cartier Halo Tiara
Lotus Flower Tiara
Snowdon Floral Tiara
Empress Maria Feodorovna’s Sapphire Bandeau
Teck Diamond Hoop Necklace
Diamond Earrings
Ruby Girandole Earrings
Emerald Earrings
Greville Pearl Earrings
Sapphire Earrings
Diamond Star Earrings
Diamond and Pearl Riviere
Star Brooch
Cartier Rose Brooch
Ear-of-Wheat Brooch
Floral Spray Brooch
Diamond Fleur-de-Lys Brooch
She was such a beautiful lady and this tiara fit her perfectly. That iconic photo of her in the bathtub wearing nothing but the tiara is absolutely amazing! It’s such a pity that her children had to sell it to pay death duties. Not that I think either of them would have much use for it now, but it’s sad that they couldn’t keep it as a remembrance or perhaps give it to the crown for others to use.
I think that for whoever bought it there should have been a proviso that they had to wear it at a public event every couple of years. A tiara like that should be seen.