Happy Birthday to the Princess Olimpia Torlonia, who turns 80 today! The granddaughter of King Alfonso XIII and Queen Victoria Eugenie of Spain, and youngest child of Infanta Beatriz and the V Prince of Civitella Cesi, who married Paul-Annik Weiller, the son of the very rich Industrialist and Philanthropist Paul-Louis Weiller and the mother Princess Sibilla of Luxembourg, the very discreet Princess Olimpia is the owner of a splendid jewellery collection, of which we are featuring one of the most significant pieces at her disposal: the Diamond Riviére!
Queen Victoria Eugenie’s Aquamarine Parure | Diamond Rivière | Empress Eugenie’s Andean Emerald Cross
Featuring around 30 premium quality diamonds set in a modern gold structure, this splendid Rivière Necklace has been worn by Princess Olimpia on quite a few public occasions, namely a Banquet held on the eve of the Marriage of Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg and her own daughter, Mrs. Sibilla Weiller, in 1994.
It is highly probable that this Diamond Necklace is in fact an old family heirloom given by King Alfonso XIII to her eldest daughter, Infanta Beatriz , on the occasion of her Wedding to the Prince of Civitella Cesi in 1935. Old press reports from that time account that, among pieces such as a Diamond and Pearl Floral Tiara from the late Queen Maria Cristina, there was also an old Diamond Rivière with the same provenance.
The piece’s modern setting might be explained by the fact that the Infanta and her husband had several new jewels commissioned from Bulgari throughout the 1930s and 1940s, such as the magnificent Fleur de Lis Diamond Necklace, as well as some family heirlooms reset, namely Queen Victoria Eugenie’s Aquamarine Tiara and Brooch. The same might have occurred to the Infanta’s Diamond Rivière. Images of Doña Beatriz wearing this Diamond Necklace are yet to be found.
In 2004, Princess Sibilla of Luxembourg wore the Diamond Rivière with her Art Deco Tiara for the Wedding Ball of Duchess Elisabeth in Bayern and Daniel Terberger, at Schloss Nymphenburg in Munich.
Princess Sibilla of Luxembourg also borrowed her mother’s Diamond Rivière, together with pieces from her great-grandmother’s Aquamarine Parure, for the lavish Wedding Gala of Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume of Luxembourg and Countess Stephanie de Lannoy in 2012. There is no doubt we will continue to see it for years to come!
Queen Victoria Eugenie’s Aquamarine Parure | Diamond Rivière | Empress Eugenie’s Andean Emerald Cross
This article was written by assistant editor, David Rato, who runs the Spanish Royal Jewels account on Instagram!
