Princess Marina’s Diamond Bow Brooch

Today marks the Anniversary of the Birth of Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent, who was born on this day in 1906! The glamorous Greek Princess who married the dashing British Prince, was widowed during the Second World War, and continued to be a busy working British Royal until her untimely death, Princess Marina possessed an exceptional Jewellery Collection, that included this Diamond Bow Brooch!

Made around 1850, the historic Diamond Bow Brooch is a:

double ribbon bow centered by an oval-shaped diamond weighing approximately 3.50 carats, accented by numerous pear-shaped and old mine-cut diamonds weighing approximately 38.00 carats, further set with numerous old mine and rose-cut diamonds weighing approximately 64.25 carats…”

While the exact origin of the Diamond Bow Brooch is known, it seems to have originated from the legendary collection of the Grand Duchess Vladimir.

In 1902, the Diamond Bow Brooch was given by Grand Duchess Vladimir to her only daughter, Grand Duchess Elena Vladimirovna, when she married Prince Nicholas of Greece and Denmark, who notably wore the piece in a portrait with her grand Diamond Kokoshnik Tiara.

In 1934, Grand Duchess Elena gave the Diamond Bow Brooch as a wedding gift to her daughter, Princess Marina, when she married Prince George, Duke of Kent, with the piece exhibited along with the other wedding gifts ahead of the Wedding, which included the Pearl Bandeau Tiara also given by her mother.

The Diamond Bow Brooch became one of the primary jewels of the Duchess of Kent began soon after her wedding, most notably worn for the Coronation of King George VI in 1937, the Presentation Court at Buckingham Palace, the Royal Variety Performance in 1938, a Gala Performance at Covent Garden in 1939, and a spectacular Cecil Beaton photoshoot with her sisters, Princess Olga of Yugoslavia and Princess Elisabeth, Countess of Törring-Jettenbach, usually paired always with the City of London Fringe Tiara and her Girandole Earrings.

Princess Marina was tragically widowed during the Second World War, but the Diamond Bow Brooch remained a favourite after the War, with appearances at a Gala at Hertford House in 1950, a Gala Performance at Covent Garden, the Opening of the Festival of Britain in 1951, her Far East Tour in 1952, a visit to Athens, and then the the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, when the it was worn with the Kent Festoon Tiara.

Princess Marina continued to wear the Diamond Bow Brooch through the 1950s and 1960s, including for the Wedding Gala of her nephew, Prince Alexander of Yugoslavia, and Princess Maria Pia of Savoy in 1955, the Wedding Ball of Archduke Ferdinand of Austria and her niece, Countess Helen zu Toerring-Jettenbach, in 1956, on the French State Visit to Britain in 1960, a Gala during the Greek State Visit in 1963, and for the Independence of the Kingdom of Lesotho in 1966.

Princess Marina was last pictured in her historic Diamond Bow Brooch with her Pearl Bandeau Tiara at the State Opening of Parliament in 1967, which was one of her final appearances in full gala before her passing the following year.

Unlike Princess Marina’s Girandole Earrings, the Diamond Bow Brooch was not worn by the next Duchess of Kent, and was sold off sometime in the 1970s, eventually ending up in the collection of American philanthropist and collector, Mrs Charles Wrightsman. The Diamond Bow Brooch was auctioned at the sale of her jewels at Sotheby’s in 2012, fetching $842,500, many times over the original estimate.

It appears that Princess Marina’s Diamond Bow Brooch now belongs to the Al-Thani Collection of the Qatar Royal Family since it was worn by Sheikha Amna bint Mohammed Al Thani of Qatar for the Committal Service of Queen Elizabeth II at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle in 2022. (H/t to David Rato/Spanish Royal Jewels).