For centuries, royal women have wowed crowds with their jewellery on special occasions. And such sophisticated pieces are not only historically rich, but worth a fortune too. In fact, some of the world’s most expensive jewels are in the hands of its royal families, according to jewellery experts from Jewellery Box.

Among them, the British royal family takes the crown, but which princess or queen has the most precious piece?

10. Empress Farah of Iran’s Harry Winston Noor-ol-Ain tiara – US$10.6 million

Empress Farah of Iran wore a Harry Winston tiara when she married the Shah of Iran in 1959.

Empress Farah of Iran wore the Noor-ol-Ain tiara when she married Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, the last Shah of Iran, in 1959. Meaning “light of the eye”, the tiara was made by Harry Winston using the 60-carat Noor-ol-Ain diamond, one of the rarest and largest pink gems in the world. It also has 324 other pink, yellow, and colourless diamonds, set in platinum, per Jeweller Magazine.

The 60-carat Noor-ol-Ain diamond is rare. 

The Persian empress wore the tiara regularly for royal events during her husband’s remaining years on the throne. After the 1979 revolution, it belonged to the state and is reportedly on display at the National Jewels Museum in the basement of the Central Bank of Iran.

9. Queen Mary I’s Cartier La Peregrina pearl – US$11.8 million

Queen Mary I of England wearing La Peregrina pearl gifted to her by her future husband King Philip II of Spain.

La Peregrina pearl, meaning “The Pilgrim” or “The Wanderer”, has travelled all over the world since it was discovered in the Gulf of Panama in the 16th century. It first belonged to Queen Mary I of England as a gift from her future husband King Philip II of Spain, according to an article on Medium.

After her death, the jewel was returned to Spain and worn by several queens before landing in the hands of historical figures like Napoleon Bonaparte’s brother Joseph who ruled Spain in the early 19th century, and later Elizabeth Taylor as an auction gift from her husband.

La Peregrina pearl was sold for a record of US$11.8 million after Elizabeth Taylor’s death. Photo: Christie’s

The Hollywood star asked Cartier to redesign it in a necklace of pearls, diamonds and rubies, according to Christie’s. After her death, it was sold at the auction house in 2011 for a record US$11.8 million.

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8. Queen Sonja of Norway’s Garrard diamond tiara – US$12 million

Queen Sonja of Norway at a gala performance to celebrate Queen Margrethe II of Denmark’s 40 years on the throne in Copenhagen, Denmark, in 2012

Among the tiaras in the possession of Queen Sonja of Norway, the piece originally inherited from Queen Maud is the most interesting – because it’s a replica.

It was first gifted to Princess Maud of Wales in 1896 when she married Prince Carl of Denmark who later became King of Norway as Haakon VII. Made by Garrard, this tri-level piece featured a base with diamond bandeau, the middle with diamond foliate scrolls, and the top with thirteen pear-shaped diamond buttons.

In 1995, it was stolen on its way to Garrard for valuation and maintenance. Never recovered, Garrard eventually made a replica to replace the stolen original. Its value is estimated to be about US$12 million today.

7. Princess Eugenie’s Boucheron emerald Kokoshnik tiara – US$12 million

Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank at their wedding in October 2018. : 
At her wedding in 2018, Princess Eugenie showed off a 100-year-old treasure of the British royal family: the Greville emerald Kokoshnik tiara, per The Court Jeweller.
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It was created in 1919 by the French luxury jeweller Boucheron for British socialite Dame Margaret Greville, who gave it to the queen mother later. Resembling an old “Kokoshnik” Russian headdress, the tiara is made of rose-cut pavé diamonds set in platinum with six emeralds on either side, according to the royal family’s website.

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Britain’s Princess Eugenie of York and her husband Jack Brooksbank leave in a carriage after their wedding ceremony at Windsor Castle, Britain, in October 2018. 

Queen Elizabeth inherited the tiara following her mother’s death in 2002 and added it to her royal tiara collection, but never wore it in public.

Princess Eugenie in her wedding dress and Kokoshnik tiara. 

6. Princess Diana’s Garrard ‘Swan Lake’ Suite – US$12.1 million

The late Princess Diana at the Royal Albert Hall after an English National Ballet production of Swan Lake in London, England, in 1997

The Swan Lake necklace was named after Princess Diana, who wore it to the ballet at London’s Royal Albert Hall in 1997 shortly before her tragic death, and it became the most valuable piece in her extensive jewellery collection.

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Princess Diana’s South Sea cultured pearl and diamond necklace and earrings.

It was created by Garrard, then the Crown Jeweller, with 178 diamonds and five pearls, according to British media. A pair of earrings were also made to complete the suite but Diana didn’t have the opportunity to wear them. The Swan Lake Suite was then sold at New York auction house Guernsey to a Ukrainian couple for US$632,000 in 2010. More recently, the same couple have asked for US$12.1 million for the piece, according to The Court Jeweller.

5. Princess Katharina Henckel von Donnersmarck’s tiara – US$12.7 million

Princess Katharina Henckel von Donnersmarck’s tiara, likely created by Chaumet. Photo: Sotheby’s Geneva

The tiara was commissioned in the 1900s, possibly from Chaumet, by German Prince Guido Henckel von Donnersmarck (1830-1916) for his second wife, Russian aristocrat Katharina Slepzow, according to Sotheby’s.

 

It features 11 large pear-shaped emeralds of up to around 500 carats all together. Its base has a series of large cushion-cut diamonds resting atop a row of diamond laurels set in silver and gold. It was sold at Sotheby’s for the first time in 1979 and later in 2011 at a record auction bid for a tiara at US$12.7 million.

4. Kate Middleton’s Delhi Durbar emerald choker – US$20 million

Catherine, Princess of Wales attends the Earthshot Prize 2022 at MGM Music Hall at Fenway in December 2022, in Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: WireImage
The Princess of Wales returned the iconic royal Delhi Durbar emerald choker to the spotlight at the Earthshot Prize last year. The piece, which originally featured 16 emeralds, was a gift to Queen Mary in 1911 from the Maharani of Patiala.

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Then-Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana dance together during a gala dinner dance at the Southern Cross Hotel in Melbourne, Australia, in 1985.

The queen asked Garrard to remodel it in 14 emeralds and brilliant-cut diamonds mounted on platinum. Later, it was given to Princess Diana as a wedding gift from Queen Elizabeth and she wore it a couple of times. It’s believed to be worth around US$20 million today according to Regal Fille.

3. Queen Elizabeth’s Cartier Williamson diamond brooch – US$30.5 million

The late Queen Elizabeth laughs as she leaves St George’s Chapel in Windsor, England, after the wedding of her youngest son Prince Edward to Sophie Rhys-Jones in 1999. 
The late Queen was gifted a pink diamond in 1947 as a wedding present from geologist John Thoburn Williamson, a mine owner in Tanzania where it was discovered, per British media. The 54.5-carat stone was cut to its current 23.6 carats and designed in a jonquil flower-shaped brooch by Cartier with an addition of 203 white diamonds in platinum set.
The Cartier Williamson diamond brooch used to be Queen Elizabeth’s favourite piece to wear at important events.  

Completed in the queen’s coronation year, 1953, the piece was worn by her at important occasions, like family portraits, the weddings of Prince Charles and Princess Diana in 1981 and Prince Edward and Sophie in 1999, as well as at the meeting with former President Obama in 2009.

2. Queen Elizabeth’s Granny’s Chips brooch – US$61 million

The late Queen Elizabeth had a penchant for precious brooches. 
Another precious brooch of the late Queen is the “Granny’s Chips”. The nickname shows the queen’s affection for her grandmother, Queen Mary, who gave her the two diamonds when she ascended the throne, according to British media. The two diamonds together on the brooch weigh around 150 carats.
The Granny’s Chips were given to Queen Elizabeth by her grandma, Queen Mary. 

The two enormous Cullinan diamonds – the III and IV – were part of a collection cut from a diamond found in Cullinan, South Africa, and were a gift from the South African government to Queen Mary. Weighing 3106 carats, it was the biggest diamond that had ever been discovered in the early 20th century, according to gem consultant Rui Galopim de Carvalho.

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1. Kate Middleton’s Cartier Nizam of Hyderabad necklace – US$80 million

Catherine, then-Duchess of Cambridge at the National Portrait Gallery in February 2014, in London, England

The most valuable royal piece is known as the Nizam of Hyderabad necklace. It was a wedding gift to the queen (then Princess Elizabeth) from the Nizam of Hyderabad in 1947, according to Regal Fille.

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