Empress Eugenie’s Emeralds

~ Saad719

Today marks the 50th Anniversary of the Death of Queen Victoria Eugenie of Spain, who died on this day in 1969. While many of her jewels remain with the Spanish Royal Family, and are now worn by Queen Sofia and Queen Letizia, today we are featuring a gift from her illustrious godmother which was sold during exile and then ended up in the Iranian Royal collection, worn by three tragic Consorts who were exiled from their countries. To mark the Anniversary of Queen Victoria Eugenie’s death, we are taking a look at Empress Eugenie’s Emeralds-

Empress Eugénie’s Pearl Tiara | Empress Eugénie’s Emeralds | Diamond Bow Brooch | Andean Emerald Cross | French Crown Pearl Brooch

In 1868, Empress Eugenie commissioned a Diamond and Emerald Tiara, from the Parisian jeweller Eugène Fontenay, featuring large, rectangular-cut emeralds, which she wore for a few portraits and took with her to exile in 1871, but that seems to have been sold and instead the Emeralds in question seem to have been taken from the Crown of Emperor Napolean III given by French Government as compensation for confiscated property, as written by Spanish Royal Jewels:

But how the Empress acquired those beautiful emeralds? I’ve seen many articles on internet claiming that the emeralds were taken from a tiara that Eugenia ordered from jeweller Eugene Fontenay in 1868. That tiara had nine fleurons centered by rectangular emeralds. In my opinion, this is not a plausible theory as the emeralds are much smaller than the ones that Queen Ena received. Also, I suspect that this tiara was sold prior to the Empress death, she did this with many of her jewels in order to invert the money.

Vincent Meylan has a better theory: the emeralds came from the Crown of Emperor Napolean III given by  French Government as compensation.After the fall of the Empire, the Empress initiated legal claims in order to retrieve properties, jewels, works of art that were confiscated by the Republic but were considered private property of the Emperor. She won some of this claims and the French Government had to compensate the Empress with substantial sums of money. In one of this occasions, she was set to receive 85 000 francs. The state decided to pay with jewels. She received her crown and 8 big emeralds taken from the emperor’s crown.

When Empress Eugénie passed away in 1920, she left a Fan to her goddaughter and namesake, Queen Victoria Eugenie of Spain, Reportedly expecting a more grand bequest from her illustrious godmother, the Queen reportedly stored it in a drawer some time, before she once removed the fan to discover the ten large, square-cut emeralds beneath, which had been hidden to avoid taxes.

To her goddaughter, the Queen of Spain, named Victoria Eugenia after her, she left a fan-shaped case with a fan inside.  Later on, Queen Ena discovered that her dear godmother had placed a “surprise” on that case. In order to avoid taxes, nine amazing square emeralds weighting 196 carats were placed underneath the fan. I’ve seen very frequently that the emeralds were a wedding gift, this is not true. The Empress gave to Victoria Eugenia a diamond tiara in the shape of two wings.

Queen Victoria Eugenie had the Emeralds from Empress Eugénie set into a Necklace by the Spanish jeweller, Sanz, which she also wore as a Bandeau for a portrait by Phillip de Lazlo around 1920.

With the nine emeralds inherited from her godmother, Queen Ena commissioned Joyeria Sanz to create a long necklace with a very geometric design.

Part of the necklace was also worn as a bandeau. The Queen placed it in between two petite diamond rivières. She was also portrayed by Osterman with this bandeau version circa 1920.

A few years later, Empress Eugénie’s Emeralds were reset into a long Diamond Sautoir from Cartier with an Andean Emerald Cross that also came from Empress Eugénie. A pair of Emerald Earrings were commissioned, as well as some emerald bracelets in addition to the eight emeralds acquired for the Cartier Diamond and Pearl Tiara.

Eventually, Empress Eugénie’s Emeralds were reset by Cartier into a two-row diamond setting, along with a brooch and a ring, which were worn by Queen Victoria Eugenie quite frequently even after her exile from Spain in 1931, often worn with the emerald version of her Cartier Diamond and Pearl Tiara, like for the Wedding Ball of Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark at Buckingham Palace.

Queen Victoria Eugenie also choose to wear Empress Eugénie’s Emeralds with the the Cartier Diamond and Emerald Tiara a few years later, in 1956, for a series of portraits by Nina Leen in Switzerland.

However, in 1961, Queen Victoria Eugenie sold Empress Eugénie’s Emeralds at Auction at Stuker in Bern, reportedly to pay expenses for the Wedding of her grandson, Prince (later King) Juan Carlos of Spain and Princess Sophia of Greece the following year.

Queen Victoria Eugenie’s Cartier Emerald Necklace was bought by Cartier at the Auction, and some of the emeralds were reset into an Emerald and Diamond Bracelet that was sold to Shah Muhammad Reza Pahlavi of Iran and worn by Empress Farah with her Seven Emerald Tiara, alongside a massive Diamond and Emerald Necklace that has been said to also contain Empress Eugénie’s Emeralds, but had been worn since 1960, before Queen Victoria Eugenie put her Emerald up for sale.

Empress Farah notably wore the Bracelet made from Empress Eugénie’s Emeralds with her Seven Emerald Tiara and the Emerald Necklace on numerous occasions, including the Iranian State Visit to France in 1961 and the Iranian State Visit to the United States in 1962, though appearances had declined by the late-1960s and the Bracelet was not publicly pictured in the years leading up to the Iranian Revolution.

Now, it appears that Empress Farah’s Necklace and the Emerald Bracelet made from Empress Eugénie’s Emeralds were worn by the Lebanese Socialite Madame Chagoury around 2018, though its unknown how she acquired it.

Empress Farah has said that she only ever owned a Turquoise Tiara, which she left in her safe in Tehran when they fled in 1979, and even gave away her pearl necklace to her secretary, and while she has never been pictured wearing grand jewels in several decades of exile, it is possible that the Emerald Necklace and Bracelet were taken out of Iran and discreetly sold?

Queen Victoria Eugenie’s Brooch and Ring were bought separately, remounted by Swiss jeweller Meister as a pendant and a ring, and offered for sale with two unmounted emeralds at the Christie’s Geneva Magnificent Jewels Sale in 2011, where the Emeralds sold for CHF 327,000.

Empress Eugénie’s Pearl Tiara | Empress Eugénie’s Emeralds | Diamond Bow Brooch | Andean Emerald Cross | French Crown Pearl Brooch

 

Empress Eugénie’s Pearl Tiara

Empress Eugénie’s Emeralds

Diamond Bow Brooch

Andean Emerald Cross

French Crown Pearl Brooch

Empress Eugénie’s Pearl Tiara

Orléans Sapphire Parure

French Crown Pearl Brooch

Maison Chaumet

‘Paris: City of Pearls’ Exhibition

I was in Buckingham Palace when the Queen died

Royal and Noble Jewels at the Victoria and Albert Museum

Orléans Sapphire Parure

Orléans Sapphire and Pearl Tiara

Action Française Tiara

Coty Emerald Tiara

Diamond Bracelet Bandeau

Empress Joséphine’s Diamond Tiara

Chaumet Curvilinear Tiara

Countess of Paris’ Diamond Earrings

Sapphire Necklace Tiara

Orléans Sapphire Necklace Tiara

Orléans Sapphire and Pearl Tiara

Württemberg Diamond Tiara

French Crown Sapphire Earrings

Diamond Comb

Embed from Getty ImagesEmbed from Getty Images

In 1858, Empress Eugenie commissioned a diamond and emerald strawberry leaf Coronet, from the Parisian jeweller Eugène Fontenay, featuring large, rectangular-cut emeralds, which she wore for a few portraits and took with her to exile in 1871, retaining the emeralds even though she sold a number of jewels at Christie’s.

In 1906, Empress Eugenie gifted a fan to her goddaughter and namesake, Queen Victoria Eugenie of Spain to mark her wedding. Reportedly expecting a more grand gift from her illustrious godmother, the Queen reportedly stored it in a drawer for many years, until just after the Empress’ death, she took it out and removed the fan to discover the ten large, square-cut emeralds beneath. Another version of this story says that the fan was inherited by Queen Victoria Eugenie in 1920, and it took her a few months to discover the emeralds, which she soon set into a necklace by the  Spanish jeweller, Sanz, that she also wore as a Bandeau for a Lazlo Portrait. There was also another configuration, worn as a long sautoir with an illustrious emerald cross pendant.

Later, Empress Eugenie’s Emeralds were reset by Cartier into a two-row diamond setting, along with a brooch and a ring, which were worn by Queen Victoria Eugenie quite frequently, even after her exile from Spain in 1931. The Emerald Parure was often worn with the emerald version of the Cartier Diamond and Pearl Tiara.

However, exile took its toll, and in 1961, Queen Victoria Eugenie sold Empress Eugenie’s Emeralds at Auction at Stuker in Bern, reportedly to pay for the wedding of her grandson, Prince (later King) Juan Carlos of Spain and Princess Sophia of Greece the following year.

Embed from Getty Images

The necklace was bought by Cartier at the Action, and seven of the emeralds were reset into a grand necklace that was sold to Shah Muhammad Reza Pahlavi of Iran and worn by Empress Farah with the Seven Emerald Tiara and Queen Soraya’s Emerald Tiara, as early as 1962. After the fall of the Iranian Monarchy, the necklace, along with the rest of the Iranian Royal Jewels is in the vault of the Central Bank of Tehran, though is not on display like some other pieces.

UPDATE- Thanks to Eric P, it appears that Empress Farah’s necklace is worn by the Lebanese Socialite Madame Chagoury, though its unknown how she acquired it.

Queen Victoria Eugenie’s Brooch and Ring were bought separately, remounted by Swiss jeweller Meister as a pendant and a ring, and offered for sale with two unmounted emeralds at the Christie’s Geneva Magnificent Jewels Sale in 2011, where the Emeralds sold for CHF 327,000.

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Royal Magazin | Aunt Ena’s Emeralds

8 thoughts on “Empress Eugenie’s Emeralds”

  1. As much as I like the new setting made for Empress Farah Diba, the setting I absolutely adore for these luscious emeralds is the sautoir. It’s so elegant and so 30’s! Queen Victoria Eugenie had to sell several of her jewels in order to survive in exile. It’s a miracle that some of them are still around and worn by her descendants!

    Reply

    1. She had quite a large collection, especially considering that her jewels were sold and divided up, but they still form the bulk of the Spanish Royal Collection! However, it is a pity that there are very few pieces dating from before Queen Ena!

      Reply

      1. Well, I guess that’s what happens when there is no jewel foundation like what Sweden has. But, like you said, Queen Ena did manage to save quite a few magnificent pieces and designated them “Joyas de Pasar”. I’m grateful that they were not subjected to taxation or they would have gone to the auctioneer’s block anyway for sure!

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