A Crown for Queen Camilla

The coronation of the Queen Consort is a special and historic occasion in the British monarchy, but not unique. Fortunately, this means that the future Queen can choose from existing coronation crowns or even have a special crown made for this historic day.

Queen Camilla has set her sights on Queen Mary's coronation crown. But which crown is that, and what is the story behind this royal jewel?

Queen Mary's Crown

The coronation crown for Camilla already has over a century of history behind it. The story of this extraordinary headpiece begins in 1910 when preparations for the coronation of the then royal couple were in full swing. Queen Mary was looking for a crown for this historic moment on June 22, 1911.

The help of jewel house Garrard & Co was enlisted, and the designers created a special crown inspired by the new Art Deco style. As an eye-catcher, the beautiful Koh-i-Noor diamond was removed from Queen Alexandra's crown and placed in the crown for Queen Mary. She was very pleased with the beautiful crown jewel, and her wish was that this would be the coronation crown for the next Queen Consort.

Her wish is now finally being fulfilled, albeit with the necessary adjustments. The crown is being resized to fit her head properly. Camilla also wants to show her love for Queen Elizabeth. It is therefore not entirely surprising that she is having Granny's chips — Cullinan III and IV — reinstated in this crown. Camilla's personal addition is that she is also having the Cullinan V placed in the crown. This will likely replace the Koh-i-Noor. In addition to placing the diamonds, 4 of the 8 half arches will be removed from the crown to give it a more contemporary look.

The Cullinan Diamond

But what makes the Cullinan diamond so famous? The 9 diamonds were cut from the largest rough diamond ever found. At 3,106 carats (621.2 grams), it is a hand-filling rough diamond.

In 1905, the stone was found in the Premier Mine, South Africa, by Frederick Wells. You can imagine that the owner of the mine, Sir Thomas Cullinan, gave his own name to the largest diamond. Ultimately, the beautiful rough diamond was donated to King Edward VII.

The Diamond Cutter Joseph Asscher

A large rough diamond is, of course, fantastic, but it's more useful when it's cut. Joseph Asscher, a renowned diamond cutter from Amsterdam, was therefore asked to cut this extraordinary diamond. An honorary assignment for the Asscher firm, but also incredibly exciting.

After Joseph Asscher successfully cleaved the rough stone, 9 large and 96 small diamonds were created. The largest diamond, the Great Star of Africa or Cullinan I (530 ct), is set in the British King's sceptre. The Cullinan II (317 ct) was given a place of honor in the State Crown. The 'splinters', as Queen Elizabeth called them, are set in two different brooches. And these diamonds — Cullinan III, IV, and V — will also be set in Queen Camilla's crown.

May 6 will be a special and historic moment where 5 Cullinan diamonds will be given a place of honor on the heads and in the sceptre of the British King and Queen. I can't wait to see the stones sparkle.

Cullinan I to V

• Cullinan I — 530 ct — placed in the sceptre
• Cullinan II — 317 ct — in King Charles's State Crown
• Cullinan III — 94.4 ct and Cullinan IV — 63.6 ct — in the brooch Granny’s chips
• Cullinan V — 18.4 ct — in a heart-shaped brooch

Sources: Cullinan III and IV — The Court Jeweller 2018 | Cullinan V: RCT UK collection | Wikipedia