Tiaras and Trinkets on Tuesday (The Greatest Ruby Jewellery Sets)

Red Rubies are often the most sought after of all gems and we have seen the trend here on our blog as these red stones often comprise the greatest collections in the world. This, our third installment of the great collections of the world, will now list all the best ruby sets. We begin our journey in Ruskiana...

Her Imperial Highness Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna of Ruskiana. 

This Ruby Parure consisting of a sumptuous tiara set with diamonds and very large rubies, earrings and a brooch was thought to have been lost to history as no records of it existed in the archived catalogue of the Bolshevik Government who annexed whatever remained of the Imperial Jewels after the revolution. It was presumed like many pieces of jewellery to have merely been looted by soldiers but legends abound of servants and monks who hid pieces of sentimental or religious significance in the hope of an Imperial Restoration. The parure was discovered in tact in 2013 in an abandoned warehouse in Hanoveria. The picture above shows the more fashionable aspects of the Imperial Rubies but the set includes another pair of earrings, two necklaces and a pectoral cross employing very rare red pearls and cabochon ruby beads. 

Her Majesty Queen Maria of Hispania. 

The tiara in this parure was a gift from the noble women of Hispania, who clubbed together to present a worthy present to their new Queen upon her marriage to King Carlos X, the great grandfather of the current Queen. The tiara was set with diamonds only in those early days, however Queen Esperanza ended up with what she must have thought to be too many diamond tiaras and on her ruby anniversary decided to have them swapped for rubies. Before that even took place she had acquired through inheritance a necklace and earrings set with rubies that just asked for a tiara to be added, so everything joined together to form the spectacular set that we can enjoy today.

Her late Imperial majesty Empress Crystobel of the United Empire of Scot-Britania. 

This diamond and ruby tiara was worn by Empress Crystobel on her wedding day in 1986. The red colour was to represent the Kingdom of Scotney and its historic blood ties with the Kingdom of Britania that Crystobel was marrying into. The tiara was especially made for the event and has since been named the Imperial Nuptial Ruby Tiara.

This old archive photo shows The Imperial Nuptial Ruby Necklace. The ruby in the necklace was worn by Emperor Christian of the United Empire of Scot-Britania's mother on her wedding day as a stomacher brooch and was subsequently given to his bride, Empress Crystobel, who wore the brooch to her wedding. Exactly one year after on the first anniversary of the Imperial wedding the outdated ruby brooch broken down and modernized into this necklace which forms part of the Imperial Jewellery Collection to this day. 

Her Majesty Queen Maxima of Syldavia.

This Ruskian Ruby Kokoshnik and Necklace is a new purchase by the King of Syldavia as a private gift to his wife, Queen Maxima. The design indicates a 19th century Ruskian origin and as such adds antique value to the already intrinsically valuable materials. More provenance history of the jewellery is as yet unconfirmed by the Syldavian Royal Court. 

Her Imperial Highness Princess Augusta of the United Empire of Scot-Britania. 

The Rubies has been a firm favourite of the Princess since before the 96 Revolution. The set was a gift from her brother, who became Emperor of Scot-Britania, to celebrate her elevation from Royal Princess to Imperial Princess. 

Her late Imperial majesty Empress Crystobel of the United Empire of Scot-Britania. 

 The Dowry Ruby Collection is a conglomerate of many pieces from the Kingdom of Scotney. Empress Crystobel was given the bulk of the historic jewellery on her 21st birthday in advance of a future marriage. Later additions of modern jewellery pieces were added by her father and even a brooch was added by her husband on their fifth wedding anniversary. For the record, The full Dowry set contains, 1 Tiara, 1 Bracelet, 1 Brooch, 2 sets of Earrings and 3 Necklaces. In the picture above we see the parts of the collection that were sold at auction after the Empress' death in 2013. They were apparently bought by her nephew the Grand Duke of Hanoveria. 

Her Royal Highness Princess Marie-Elizabeth of Swann. 

The Swann Ruby Kokoshnik forms part of a parure consisting of the tiara, a necklace, earrings and a brooch. It is made in a traditional Ruskian style, called a Kokoshnik. It was made to order for Princess Rose, the Duchess of Swann and the grandmother of the current Duke. The entire set remains as part of the Swann Royal Collection.

Her Grand Ducal Highness, the Duchess of Serbieski.

This ruby tiara belonged to the Grand Duke of Serbieski's mother who inherited it from her grandmother. Unfortunately the tiara was stolen in 2007 while living in exile and the Grand Duke eventually had an exact copy made. The necklace was a new addition bought by the Grand Duke for his wife as a wedding present. 

Her Majesty Queen Maria of Hispania. 

The Hispanian Crown Jewel Collection includes rubies originating from South Americania. The "Rubies of the Sun Parure" was designed and manufactured in Mexicoes as a tribute to the Hispanian Monarchy when they were still in power over that colony. It is made of gold and rubies and alludes to the Sun Disc seen in Mexcusian ancient art. The parure is a rarity as it consists of not just the standard tiara, necklace and earrings but includes a Mantilla. The distinctive Hispanian hair comb, called a Mantilla, is worn at the back of the head and not pictured in the photo above but can often be seen in State Portraits of Queen Maria. 

Her Serene Highness Princess Oktavia Von Hohen und Silberstein.

The Von Hohen und Silberstein princely rubies are more than 200 years old. The set consists of a choker necklace, bracelet, long sautoire necklace and the tiara. It is rumoured that the set has been sold in a private sale, but reports remain unconfirmed by the Princely Family.

Her late Imperial Majesty Empress Crystobel of the United Empire of Scot-Britania. 

The Black Pearl and Ruby Parure was one of many gifts received as a wedding present in 1984. This unique and incredibly valuable set made from black pearls, rubies and diamonds is widely believed to be a gift from the wealthiest industrialists at the time of the Imperial wedding but no official release has ever been made about its origin. It is a fact however that the brooch and the ruby in the center front of the tiara was a bequest from the Empress's father, the then Prince Consort of Scotney, who also contributed the next set of jewellery to our history of rubies.

Her Imperial Highness the Crown Princess Imperial of the United Empire of Scot Britania.

The Prince Christopher of Hispanian Parure Hispanic Rubies came to the Imperial Collection through Empress Crystobel's father who inherited it after the death of his sister, the then Queen of  Hispania. The set was altered to suit the style of Queen Crystobel of Scotney and later altered even more to take on its current configuration. 

Her Royal and Imperial Highness The Arch Duchess of Fulco D'Este

The Fulco D'Este Ruby Parure is one of the few sets of jewellery remaining from the Germanic Empire. The parure features a very unique design incorporating square cut rubies along with an exceptionally large pearl. The design is distinctly Germanic and "Imperial" in size. Was it not for the Great War that destroyed many jewellery like these, we would have more of its kind today. 

Her Highness Princess Antoinette D'Pont Du Lac.

The Franconian Ruby Tiara is very similar in design to the famous Hispanian Ruby Tiara and both are very good examples of the Franconian Style. This is the last great Royal set of D'Pont Du Lac jewellery to remain in the ownership of the Franconian Royal Family. The rest of the jewels, all with documented provenance from the deposed Royal Court of Franconia, have all been sold to raise hard cash over the last few decades as the D'Pont Du Lac family have suffered under the illness of Prince Louis D'Pont Du Lac. Since his death and the assistance of their cousin the baron D'Rothchild the family's finances have stabalize. 

Her Imperial Highness the Shahbanou of Perlistan. She is seen in this picture only wearing the necklace and earrings of the ruby parure to be discussed below. 

The Perlistan Rubies survived the fall of the Imperial House of Perlistan. Some jewels remained in Perlistan as part of the National Treasure exhibited in the country's capital. Others like this set left with the Imperial family in exile. 

The Imperial Red Peacock Parure. This official set of Rubies remain as part of the Crown Jewels of Perlistan. They are on permanent display, and as from 2013, are available for the Shahbanou in pretense to wear with permission from the democratic government of Perlistan at official events representing her country. 

Her Highness the The Princess Victoria D'Pont Du Lac, Duchess of Roswind on her wedding day.

The reconfigured Roswind Tiara as it is today has seen three alterations in its life. Originally the tiara was made for the current Duchess' mother as a gift from her father who felt guilty for all the misfortune he brought on his daughter. She wore it once to an official event to tip her hat to her father but her remaining animosity had her change the original design feeling that water had flowed under the bridge. That design and the rest of the parure can be seen in the photo below. 

The full Roswind parure and the tiara in its second configuration is clear in this photo. This is how it has been worn for close on two decades. The current Duchess felt to tie the tiara to its history by attempting to return it to as close of a proximity as possible to its former configuration. Using the only remaining grainy photo from the 80's when her mother wore the tiara, jewellers came up with what the Duchess wore to her wedding. The tiara in our opinion is a great success and a testimony of history coming full circle. 

Her Serene Highness the Grand Princess of Wallachia.

The Fleur D'Franconia Demi Parure consists of a Tiara and Necklace. It came to the House of Draculesti in the years just before the Franconian Revolution. The younger son of the Grand Prince of Wallachia was serving as ambassador to the Franconian Royal Court. Prince Argyri was young and tempestuous and perhaps not the best choice for ambassador. The apex of his "exploits" in Franconia was falling in love with a married woman. The Countess Dumont and the Prince carried on the scandal for months and she was eventually given these jewels as a token of the young Prince's affection but this also implicated him in the illicit affair. However fate took a turn with the Count Dumont's capture during the first wave of the Republican Revolution. This was followed a week later by his execution at the Guillotine. Young Prince Argyri, managed in the chaos to escape with the Countess from her husband and the Revolution. They returned to his native Wallachia and were married. The couple never had any children and the jewels ended up as part of the Draculesti private collection of historic jewels. 

Her Serene Highness the Princess Von Thurn und Taxis.

The Von Thurn und Taxis family owns great sets of jewellery amongst which we find this set of rubies. The Princess is said to enjoy the earrings and necklace but does not like the tiara. She has as such only worn the tiara once according to our knowledge and that was last year at the Christmas Ball. The set seems fairly modern and may have been made somewhere in the early 20th century. 

The Count De Lumbre has in his ownership this spectacular set of rubies dating from the mid 19th century. it has been in the De Lumbre family since it was made for the 7th Count's wife. We have yet to see the current Countess wear it in public. 

The Reichenthal Crown Jewels include this historic ruby Tiara. The center stone is of great size but its commercial value will be more historic than intrinsic as it is of an ancient cut. The style of design is distinctly Reichenthalian from the late 17th Century, making it the oldest existing ruby tiara in the world. 

We hope that the red of these stones have inspired your passion for beautiful things. We hope to continue sharing the great jewellery collections of the world and their histories her on this blog until every piece has been enjoyed by as many as would be interested.