Today marks the Anniversary of the birth of Princess Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood, who was born on this day in 1897. As the only daughter of King George V and Queen Mary, she had an enormous jewellery collection, which included Queen Victoria’s Sapphire Tiara and a Fringe Tiara, but the highlight of which we are featuring today, the Harewood Scroll Tiara-
Harewood Scroll Tiara | Queen Victoria’s Sapphire Tiara | Harewood Fringe Tiara | Emerald Necklace | Russian Sapphire Devant de Corsage | Diamond Chain
When Princess Mary married Viscount Lascelles, the future 6th Earl of Harewood, in 1922, the King’s only daughter received several spectacular Wedding Gifts, which was highlighted by this magnificent Diamond Scroll Tiara newly created by Garrard using the ancient Clanricarde Jewels inherited by Viscount Lascelles from his eccentric great-uncle, the last Marquess of Clanricarde which had lain unused in a bank vault for over a century. Two hundred years earlier, it had been reportedly prophesied that
‘the diamonds would one day be worn by the daughter of a King’
Princess Mary wore the Tiara with a Sapphire and Diamond Brooch in the central element along with Queen Victoria’s Sapphire Necklace and her Russian Sapphire Devant de Corsage for a Presentation Court at Buckingham Palace in 1922, when Official Portraits were taken.
Princess Mary wore the Harewood Diamond Tiara on numerous occasions over the years, paired with Diamond Brooches and Pendants also created from the Clanricarde Jewels, among them for the French State Visit to Britain in 1939.
The Princess Royal wore the Harewood Diamond Tiara, set with the Sapphire, with Queen Victoria’s Sapphire Necklace and her Russian Sapphire Devant de Corsage for the Coronation of her brother, King George VI, and a series of portraits taken at the same time.
Princess Mary also wore the Harewood Diamond Tiara, set with the Sapphire, with Queen Victoria’s Sapphire Necklace and her Russian Sapphire Devant de Corsage for the Coronation of her niece, Queen Elizabeth II, in 1953.
The Harewood Diamond Tiara was worn by Princess Mary for the Coronation Gala at Covent Garden in 1953 and also with her Emerald Necklace for a Gala Performance at Covent Garden during the Swedish State Visit to Britain in 1954 and also during the Ethiopian State Visit to Britain in 1954.
One of the last notable appearances of the Sapphire version of the Harewood Tiara came in 1956, when Princess Mary paired it with Queen Victoria’s Sapphire Necklace and her Russian Sapphire Devant de Corsage as she joined the British Royal Family for a Banquet hosted by the British Army in the Great Hall of the Royal Hospital in Chelsea.
Princess Mary continued to wear the Harewood Diamond Tiara into the latter years of her life, like for the German State Visit to Britain in 1958, a Gala Performance at Covent Garden in 1960, and the Belgian State Visit to Britain in 1963.
Following Princess Mary’s death in 1965, the Harewood Scroll Tiara, in the diamond version, was auction in 1970 for £9,500 while the Sapphire and Diamond Brooch was sold for £10,500. The Russian Sapphire Devant de Corsage had been sold for £28,000 in 1960, during her lifetime, while the Queen Victoria’s Sapphire Necklace sold for £8,000. More recently, after remaining in the family for decades, Queen Victoria’s Sapphire Coronet was sold, but unlike the other pieces which disappeared, it is now on display the Victoria & Albert Museum in London.
Harewood Scroll Tiara | Queen Victoria’s Sapphire Tiara | Harewood Fringe Tiara | Emerald Necklace | Russian Sapphire Devant de Corsage | Diamond Chain
Harewood Scroll Tiara
Queen Victoria’s Sapphire Tiara
Harewood Fringe Tiara
Emerald Necklace
Russian Sapphire Devant de Corsage
Diamond Chain
Harewood Floral Tiara
Queen Mary’s Crown
George IV State Diadem
Queen Victoria’s Regal Circlet 
Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara
Vladimir Tiara
Delhi Durbar Tiara
Cambridge Emerald Parure
Queen Mary’s Lover’s Knot Tiara
Queen Mary’s Fringe Tiara
Queen Adelaide’s Fringe Tiara
Gloucester Honeysuckle Tiara
Cambridge Sapphire Parure
Teck Turquoise Tiara
Iveagh Tiara
Queen Alexandra’s Kokoshnik Tiara
Maria Feodorovna’s Sapphire Bandeau
Queen Mary’s Diamond Bandeau
Crochet Bandeau Tiara
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Featuring a large detachable diamond cluster within an ornate scroll design, the Tiara is said to have a Russian Provenance, possibly bought from an exiled Romanov relative, around the time of Princess Mary’s Wedding to Viscount Lascelles, the later 6th Earl of Harewood in 1922. The Tiara was frequently used with a sapphire and diamond cluster brooch, which was a wedding gift from Queen Mary, and often paired with the necklace from Queen Victoria’s Sapphire Parure and a devant de corsage formerly in the collection of the Grand Duchess Olga Feodorovna, which was a wedding gift from the groom.
The sapphire version of Harewood Scroll Tiara, with the necklace and devant de corsage, were notably worn by Princess Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood at the Coronation of her brother, King George VI, in 1937 and the Coronation of her niece, Queen Elizabeth II, in 1953, as well as a variety of glittering events.
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The Princess Royal also frequently wore the all-Diamond version of the Tiara, with diamond rivieres, or her grand Emerald Necklace, most notably at the Coronation Gala at Covent Garden in 1953.
Embed from Getty ImagesEmbed from Getty Images
Following Princess Mary’s death in 1965, the Harewood Scroll Tiara, in the diamond version, was auction in 1970 for £9,500 while the sapphire and diamond brooch was sold for £10,500. The devant de corsage had been sold for £28,000 in 1960, during her lifetime, while the Queen Victoria’s sapphire necklace sold for £8,000. More recently, after remaining in the family for decades, Queen Victoria’s Sapphire Coronet was sold, but unlike the other pieces which disappeared, it has just gone on display the Victoria & Albert Museum this month.
