Today marks the 200th Anniversary of the Birth of Empress Maria Alexandrovna of Russia, who was born on this day in 1824! The Princess of Hesse who married the the reforming Tsar Alexander II, Tsarina Maria Alexandrovna had a massive Jewellery Collection, but among the most magnificent pieces was the Russian Imperial Diamond Necklace!
The magnificent Diamond Necklace was composed of thirty-six massive diamonds, averaging more than 13 carats and totalling a weight of approximately 475.30 carats.
The upper row, comprising 21 solitaires, formed the primary “rivière”, while an additional 15 diamonds and numerous smaller brilliants were elegantly suspended as pendeloques.
The diamonds display varied hues, including charmingly bluish and pink tones, creating a harmonious and captivating brilliance.
The Indian cutting of the diamonds, likely dating back to the 17th or 18th century, adds to the piece’s fascination.
The Diamond Necklace entered the Imperial Treasury following the death of Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich of Russia in 1831, and was afterwards worn by almost all the women of the Imperial Family on their Wedding Day.
Empress Maria Alexandrovna was painted wearing the Imperial Diamond Necklace for a portrait by Ivan Makarov at some point in the 1860s, along with numerous jewels adoring her traditional Russian Court Dress.
The Imperial Diamond Necklace became part of the outfit worn by all Grand Duchesses on their Wedding Day, along with the massive Cherry Diamond Earrings, the Wedding Tiara with a Pink Diamond, the Nuptial Crown, and the Cloak Clasp which had been made for Catherine the Great. The Necklace was worn by Grand Duchess Olga Konstantinovna when she married King George I of the Hellenes in 1867, Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna when she wed Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh in 1874, Grand Duchess Anastasia Mikhailovna when she married the Hereditary Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin in 1879, and Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna when she wed Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich in 1894.
Brides who married into the Imperial Family also wore the Imperial Diamond Necklace and Wedding Regalia, like Princess Dagmar of Denmark when she married Grand Duke Alexander Alexandrovich in 1866, Duchess Marie of Mecklenburg-Schwerin when she wed Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich in 1874, Princess Elisabeth of Saxe-Altenburg when she married Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich in 1884, Princess Elisabeth of Hesse and by Rhine when she wed Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich in 1884, Princess Alexandra of Greece when she married Denmark and Grand Duke Pavel Alexandrovich in 1889.
In 1894, the Imperial Diamond Necklace was worn along with the Cherry Diamond Earrings, the Wedding Tiara and the Nuptial Crown, the Diamond Bracelet, and the Cloak Clasp, which had been made for Catherine the Great, were worn by Princess Alix of Hesse for her Wedding to Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, which appears to be the only occasion she wore the Diamond Necklace.
Instead, the Imperial Diamond Necklace was often worn by Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, most notably for a series of portraits and at the Coronation of Tsar Nicholas II in 1896.
The Dowager Empress also loaned the Imperial Diamond Necklace to her daughter, Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna, for the Opening of the Russian Duma in 1906.
The Imperial Diamond Necklace continued to be worn by Romanov Brides along with the traditional Wedding Regalia, including when Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna wed Duke Peter Alexandrovich of Oldenburg in 1901, Grand Duchess Elena Vladimirovna married Prince Nicholas of Greece and Denmark in 1902, and Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna wed Prince Wilhelm, Duke of Södermanland in 1908. While they did discuss wearing the Jewels on their Wedding Day, the four daughters of Tsar Nicholas II and Tsarina Alexandra Feodorovna sadly never got married before their execution.
As property of the Imperial Treasury, the Imperial Diamond Necklace was not among the Jewels taken by the Imperial Family into exile, and was instead left in St. Petersburg. In 1922, the Necklace was photographed for the Soviets, but shortly afterwards was sold off by the Soviet Government.
The American Heiress Margaret Thompson Biddle was photographed wearing a similar Diamond Necklace in the 1940s, possibly acquired by the Soviets when her husband was the Ambassador to Poland in the late 1930s. The Necklace seems to have been altered by the 1960s, and while several jewels from Margaret Thompson Biddle were auctioned last year, the fate of the Diamond Necklace remains unknown.
Royal Magazin
Tsarina Alexandra Feodorovna’s Pearl Drop Tiara
