Happy Birthday to Hisako, Princess Takamado of Japan, who turns 70 today! The accomplished widow of the Japanese Emperor’s cousin who is a storybook author and a good friend of many Foreign Royals. Princess Takamado has one of the largest jewellery collections among the Imperial Princesses, which we are featuring today!
Wedding Tiara
When Hisako Tottori married Prince Norihito of Mikasa, Prince Takamado, the third son of Prince and Princess Mikasa and a nephew of Emperor Hirohito, in 1984, she received this Pearl and Diamond Tiara with a mirrored Necklace likely made by Mikimoto as part of the jewels given to Princesses upon their coming of age or marriage into the Imperial Family.
As her primary Parure, Princess Takamado has worn her Wedding Tiara and Necklace for several New Year’s Courts and State Banquets, as well as when she represented the Imperial Family at the Wedding of Princess Madeleine of Sweden in 2013.
The Wedding Tiara and Necklace have often been worn by Princess Takamado in recent years, including for the Japanese New Year’s Reception in 2019, the Accession of Emperor Naruhito of Japan, the Enthronement Banquet, and the Japanese New Year’s Reception in 2020.
More recently, Princess Takamado wore the Wedding Tiara and Necklace when she represented Japan at the Wedding Banquet of Crown Prince Hussein of Jordan last month.
Diamond Bandeau Tiara
A striking Diamond Laurel Wreath Bandeau, with two diamonds wings on either side, this Tiara is of an unknown provenance but Princess Takamado has been seen wearing it since the late 1980s. The Tiara may be an old Imperial Family Heirloom but is more likely a piece from Princess Takamado’s personal collection, acquired for her or inherited from her own family.
Princess Takamado has been photographed wearing the Diamond Bandeau Tiara at the annual Ceremony of New Year’s Celebration at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo. Unlike other jewels in the Imperial Family, the Tiara does not have a mirrored necklace and has usually been worn with her Diamond Cluster Necklace.
One of the more notable appearences of the Diamond Laurel Wreath Bandeau Tiara came in 2016, when Princess Takamado represented Japan at King Carl XVI Gustaf’s y0th Birthday Banquet.
Mikasa Tiara
A striking modern jewel round pearls hanging inside geometric diamond loops and scrolls, this Tiara first appeared on Princess Mikasa, the mother-in-law of Princess Takamado, in the 1960s, being worn by her daughter, Princess Yasuko, ahead of her wedding in 1966, and by the younger daughter, Princess Masako, through the 1960s and the 1970s, including for the British State Visit to Japan in 1975.
Princess Mikasa loaned the Tiara to Princess Takamado to wear at the New Year’s Court in the 2000s, and it was also worn at the Wedding of Prince Carl Philip of Sweden in 2015 and the Japanese New Year’s Reception in 2018.
Diamond Necklace Tiara
Princess Takamado was initially seen wearing this antique diamond necklace in the 1980s, and in 2014, it was worn by her second daughter, the former Princess Noriko, as a Tiara for a Wedding Reception in Shimane, while it was worn a necklace for the Reception in Tokyo.
More recently, Noriko Senge wore the Diamond Necklace Tiara at the Enthronement of Emperor Naruhito of Japan in 2019.
Diamond Necklace
Princess Takamado possesses another spectacular Diamond Necklace, this one composed of large diamond clusters with a pendant, which she wore periodically with the Diamond Bandeau TIara over the years and was also worn by Princess Noriko with the Diamond Necklace Tiara mentioned above.
In 2018, the necklace was worn as a Tiara by the former Princess Ayako, the youngest daughter of Prince and Princess Takamado, for her Wedding Reception, and the following year, the piece was worn by Ayako Moriya again, for the Enthronement of Emperor Naruhito of Japan.
