Countess Gunilla Bernadotte’s Tiara

Today marks the 10th of the Death of Countess Gunnila Bernadotte, who was passed away on this day in 2016! The Swedish Countess who married the former Swedish Prince and became the aunt of a King and two Queens, we are revisiting Countess Gunnila’s striking Pearl and Diamond Tiara today!

But first, lets learn about Countess Gunnila! The daughter of Count Nils Claes Ludvig Wachtmeister af Johannishus and Baroness Märta Ebba Carolina de Geer af Leufsta, Countess Gunnila Wachtmeister af Johannishus was married to Carl-Herman Bussler from 1942 to his death in 1981. The couple has four children. In 1988, Countess Gunnila married Prince Carl Johan Bernadotte, Count of Wisborg, the widower youngest son of King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden and Princess Margaret of Connaught. The marriage made her the aunt of King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, and Queen Anne-Marie of Greece, and the coupe were present at many royal events until his passing in 2012. Countess Gunnila remained present at Swedish Royal Events, passing away in 2016.

This Tiara is based around an aigrette that is “unusual and very personal in its design.” It is made of platinum, diamonds, and cultured pearls, which form an elegant lily of the valley, which can be taken apart, and worn as a brooch. The tiara originated from Countess Gunilla’s own Swedish aristocratic family, rather than from her husband’s family, most likely from her mother, Countess Märta (Hörke) Wachtmeister af Johannishus, born de Geer af Leufsta (1896-1976).

The tiara is in the shape of a lily of the vally. The pearls have a diameter between 4.2 to 7.7 mm and the total diamond weight is approximately 15.00 cts. French hallmarks. Probably circa 1912-1925. Platinum. Weight 50 gr.

Most likely Märta (Hörke) Wachtmeister af Johannishus, born de Geer af Leufsta (1896-1976) then passed on to her daughter Gunnila Bernadotte af Wisborg, born Wachtmeister af Johannishus (1923 -2016.)

According to information, Märta and her sister Marianne, (married to Carl Bernadotte and re-married to Marcus Wallenberg) both received a tiara at their weddings. Gunnila Bernadotte married Count Carl-Johan Bernadotte (1916 -2012), the youngest son of King Gustaf VI Adolf.

Countess Gunnila wore the Pearl and Diamond Tiara soon after her marriage to Prince Carl Johan Bernadotte, Count of Wisborg in 1988, paired with her Moonstone Suite for a Banquet at the Royal Palace of Stockholm.

The Pearl and Diamond Tiara and Moonstone Suite were also worn for the Luxembourg State Banquet at the Royal Palace of Stockholm in 1991. The Prince’s title of Count of Wisborg had been given by Grand Duchess Charlotte of Luxembourg in 1951, six years after he lost his Swedish Princely Title upon his first marriage.

Countess Gunnila’s husband, Count Carl Johan Bernadotte, was the son of King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden and Princess Margaret of Connaught, and as such they were present at most Scandinavian Royal Weddings and Events, including the 50th Birthday Celebrations of King Carl Gustav of Sweden in 1996 and Queen Margrethe’s 60th Birthday in 2000.

The central lily of the valley was worn as a Brooch by Countess Gunnila for the Wedding Gala of Princess Alexia of Greece and Carlos Morales Quintana at Bridgewater House in London in 1999.

The Pearl and Diamond Tiara was also notably worn by Countess Gunnila to the Wedding of Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark in 2004, the Wedding Crown Princess Victoria in 2010 and the Wedding of Princess Madeleine of Sweden in 2013.

Countess Gunnila also wore the Pearl and Diamond Tiara for other official events, among them a Swedish State Visit to Denmark in 2007 and the 70th Birthday Gala for her niece, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen in 2010.

After Countess Gunnila’s death in 2016, her Pearl and Diamond Tiara went on Auction at the Bukowski’s Auction House in Stockholm for an estimate of 60 000 – 80 000 SEK / $6700 – $9000 USD, eventually selling for 343,000 SEK / $38,000 USD surpassing its original estimate. Its current location is not known.