With September’s birthstone being sapphire, there is no better time to look at some of the most stunning sapphire pieces. The Russian Sapphire Cluster Brooch is one of the most significant sapphire brooches in the British collection today. 

This brooch features a reported 130 carat cushion-cut sapphire, a rose-design gold and diamond border with a second border of 22 round-cut diamonds. 

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The original provenance of this brooch remains a mystery. Some historians believe that the piece was given to Princess Marie of Hesse when she married Tsesarevich Alexander Nikolaevich in 1840. However, this has not been confirmed. 

The piece may have then been given to her daughter-in-law, the future Empress Maria Feodorovna to wear when she attended the 1874 wedding of Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna and Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh. 

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Queen Mary bought the brooch in 1934 but it is unclear who the seller was. It remained in her private collection until her death in 1953 when a young Queen Elizabeth II inherited it. 

The new Queen did not wear the stunning sapphire brooch but rather her mother did- the Queen Mother frequently wore it for both family and state events. 

Queen Elizabeth II did wear the brooch for her 2014 visit to the Vatican where she and The Duke of Edinburgh met Pope Francis.