Happy Birthday to Princess Irene of Greece, who turns 82 today! The youngest daughter of King Paul of Greece and Princess Frederica of Hanover, and the sister of King Constantine of Greece and Queen Sofia of Spain, Princess Irene has attended a plethora glittering events, often wearing Queen Frederica’s Pearl Necklace Tiara!

Queen Sophie’s Diamond Circle Tiara | Queen Frederica’s Pearl Necklace Tiara | Princess Irene’s Pendant | Diamond Circle Necklace

A striking modern pearl and diamond necklace composed of pearls set within scrolls of diamonds, with a detachable central element, the provenance of this Necklace is unknown, but it seems to have been acquired shortly after King Paul and Queen Frederica Tour of America in late 1953, for which Queen Frederica only wore the Greek Emerald Tiara/Necklace and her Ruby Pendant.

Queen Frederica debuted the Pearl and Diamond Necklace at the Christening of Prince Ernst August von Hannover in 1954, and then paired it with Queen Sophie’s Diamond Tiara for the Greek State Visit to Yugoslavia in 1955, the Greek State Visit to Germany in 1956, the Greek State Visit to Ethiopia in 1959, and a State Visit to the Vatican in 1959.

The Pearl and Diamond Necklace was only worn once publicly by Queen Frederica’s elder daughter, the future Queen Sofia of Spain, who wore it for a spectacular Olympic Gala in Naples in 1960.

Queen Frederica wore the Pearl and Diamond Necklace for a Dinner at the Hotel Grande Bretagne in Athens in 1962, on multiple occasions during the Greek State Visit to Britain in 1963, and on a visit to New York City in 1964.

In 1962, the Pearl and Diamond Necklace was worn as a Tiara by Princess Irene for the Wedding Ball of Prince Juan Carlos of Spain and Princess Sophia of Greece in 1962, as well as the Greek Monarchy Centenary Celebrations in 1963, including the Banquet and Gala Performance as well as the French State Visit to Greece a few months later.

After being widowed, Queen Frederica passed along the Greek Emerald Parure and Greek Ruby Parure to Queen Anne-Marie, but retained the Pearl and Diamond Necklace along with Queen Sophie’s Diamond Tiara, which was worn with her Cartier Sapphire Pendant for the Greek Banquet at Claridge’s Hotel in 1963, the Wedding Ball of King Constantine II of Greece and Princess Anne Marie of Denmark in 1964, the Wedding of Prince Michael of Greece in 1965, for a Gala at the Teatro Real in Madrid in 1966, and the Wedding Ball of the Margrave of Baden and Archduchess Valerie of Austria in 1966.

On a couple of occasions, Queen Frederica also wore the central Pearl and Diamond element as a brooch, most notably for the Christening of Princess Alexia of Greece in 1965 and on a visit to Jerusalem in 1965.

In addition to her Cartier Sapphire Pendant, Queen Frederica also wore the Pearl and Diamond Necklace with Queen Sophia’s Ruby Brooch, like at the Wedding of King Constantine of Greece and Princess Anne-Marie of Denmark in 1964 and the Christening of Crown Prince Pavlos of Greece in 1967, as well as with her Emerald Pendant.

Princess Irene paired the Pearl and Diamond Necklace Tiara with her Diamond Circle Necklace for the Wedding Ball of Princess Beatrix of The Netherlands in 1966.

After the Greek Royal family were exiled in 1967, Queen Frederica  went to live with her daughter, Queen Sofia of Spain, in Madrid, dying there in 1981. While Princess Irene has worn Queen Sophie’s Diamond Circle Tiara, her Pendant, and Diamond Circle Necklace, the Pearl and Diamond Necklace Tiara has not made an appearance for decades, though maybe, like Queen Sophie’s Diamond Tiara, it is just waiting a reappearance.

Queen Sophie’s Diamond Circle Tiara | Queen Frederica’s Pearl Necklace Tiara | Princess Irene’s Pendant | Diamond Circle Necklace

Queen Sophie’s Diamond Circle Tiara