Prince Ricardo De La Cerda
Although opal is October’s birthstone and can come in a variety of hues, it is rarely seen in a tiara. In the early twentieth century, many believed that opals were considered bad luck and had the jewels replaced with other stones. Some of the most beloved royal tiaras were originally set with opals, including Queen Victoria’s Oriental Circlet.
Prince Albert designed this tiara for his wife after seeing a great deal of Indian architecture and design at the Great Exhibition of 1851.
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Garrard & Co created the original tiara in 1853 with seventeen arches inspired by Mughal architecture and lotus flower designs, set with 2,500 diamonds and opals in the centre of the arches.
Queen Victoria then commissioned an opal necklace, brooch, and earrings to match the tiara.
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When her daughter-in-law, Alexandra, inherited the opal parure upon her death, she made significant changes.
Queen Alexandra had the number of arches reduced from seventeen to eleven, making a shorter tiara. She also had the opals removed, as she did feel that they brought bad luck to the wearer, and had rubies put in their place.
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Despite those changes, there is not a record of Alexandra wearing the piece publicly. It was not seen again until 1937 when Queen Elizabeth (later the Queen Mother) wore it. She notably wore it on the 1939 Royal Tour of Canada, and would wear it many times after.
In fact, it became such a favourite of hers, that she hung on to it long after it should have left her care. In 1952, it should have passed to her daughter on her accession as Queen Elizabeth II. However, the new monarch knew how much the tiara meant to her mother and allowed her to retain sole use of it. Eventually, Queen Elizabeth II took possession of the piece on her mother’s death in 2002.
Queen Elizabeth II wore the tiara once in 2006.