On my visit to the Royal Palace in Kuantan to confirm the ‘discovery’ of Queen Mary’s Cartier Diamond Lozenge Bandeau last week, Queen (Tengku Ampuan) Azizah of Pahang tasked me with solving the mystery of her Aquamarine Tiara, which has a twin in Scotland.
Pahang State Tiara | Aquamarine Tiara | Queen Mary’s Diamond Lozenge Bandeau
A spectacular Aquamarine and Diamond Tiara of ornate design from the turn of the 20th century, the Tiara is in a case from Carrington & Co from the reign of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra, and is almost identical to the Tiara of Lady Saltoun, though it is not the same piece nor a copy from Garrard as has been stated in some places. The elements of the Tiara can be removed to be worn as five separate brooches, while a smaller version of the Tiara can also be created from the separate elements.
Queen Azizah told us that the Aquamarine Tiara was acquired by her step-grandmother, Sultanah Nora of Johor, the consort of her grandfather, Sultan Ismail of Johor, who had bought the Tiara at Hennell in London at some point in the late 1970s or early 1980s. Sultanah Norah notably wore the Tiara for the Wedding of the then Tengku Mahkota (Crown Prince) of Pahang and Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah of Johor in 1984.
Around the turn of the century, Queen Azizah, then the Tengku Puan (Crown Princess) of Pahang, acquired the Tiara from Tunku Puan Nora, who has sold off much of her jewels. Tengku Puan Azizah wore the Aquamarine Tiara on several occasions through the early 2000s, including several Coronation and Birthday Galas as well as a series of spectacular Official Portraits.
Before she became Tengku Ampuan (Queen) of Pahang and Raja Permaisuri Agong (Queen) of Malaysia in quick succession, the Aquamarine Tiara was the most prominent jewel in the collection of Tengku Puan Azizah, worn for the Coronation of the Sultan of Selangor in 2003 and the Coronation of the Sultan of Kedah in 2018.
Queen Azizah has often loaned her Aquamarine Tiara to Family Brides over the years, including when it was worn by Tengku Nurul Kamalia at her wedding to Dato Ahmad Najmi in 2008 and later when it was loaned to Tunku Syazwan Kaiyisah at her wedding to Wan Putera Shahril in 2013.
Queen Azizah’s Aquamarine Tiara was also worn by Tengku Madina Kamilia at her wedding to Encik Mujammad Fadhil in 2017 and by Puteri Amida Afsha Afzan for her wedding to Wan Putera Shahjuan in 2021.
The Aquamarine Tiara was also worn by Queen Azizah’s daughter, Princess Afzan, while trying on Tiaras in a series of private photos in 2021, before Princess Afzan wore the Aquamarine Tiara for her ‘Istiadat Bersanding’ Ceremony at the Istana Abdulaziz in Kuantan in 2024.
The Royal Watcher, image cannot be used without permission.
When we published our article on the Tiara of Lady Saltoun a few years ago, Queen Azizah reached out and told us she has an almost identical Tiara which she had bought in London. While trying to determine the provenance of the piece and its connection with the Saltoun Tiara, Her Majesty went into the vault and sent us images of the Tiara and its case!
The exact origin of Lady Saltoun’s Tiara is unknown, but it was notably worn in the 1960s for the Wedding of Queen Margrethe of Denmark in 1967 and the Wedding of Princess Benedikte of Denmark in 1968, who were both daughters of her husband’s first cousin, Queen Ingrid of Denmark. In 2013, the Tiara was worn by Lady Saltoun’s granddaughter, Louise Nicolson, at her Wedding, which proves that the family have retained their heirloom and it is separate piece from Queen Azizah’s Aquamarine Tiara.
After the initial article was published two years ago, Her Majesty told me that us has seen comments that this Tiara is a fake or a copy of the Saltoun Tiara that she had made at Garrard and thus she wanted us to clarify that the Tiara was acquired by Sultanah Nora of Johor, the consort of the Queen’s grandfather, Sultan Ismail of Johor, at Hennell in London quite a few years ago, before being bought by Queen Azizah herself from her ‘Auntie Nora’ (whose sister was married to the Queen’s father, Sultan Iskandar). She said:
‘I love the Tiara, even if its a copy … but its not a fake for sure’
In recent years, Queen Azizah has received a barrage of hateful comments and several rude messages accusing her of having the Saltoun Tiara copied to create her Aquamarine Tiara. On my visit to the Palace to examine Queen Mary’s Cartier Diamond Lozenge Bandeau, which you can spot in the back, the Queen and I compared the details of both Tiaras, and found them to be identical down to the cuts of several diamonds, though the central stone looks different, possibly due to the lighting of the photographs. However, we are happy to confirm that Queen Azizah’s piece is an authentic antique Tiara and no copy of any kind, which should put the hateful comments to rest.
Having confirmed the Tiara is an antique piece dating from between 1901 and 1910, housed in its original Carrington & Co case, it raises the question if there were two identical Tiaras created?
Pahang State Tiara | Aquamarine Tiara | Queen Mary’s Diamond Lozenge Bandeau
