Amethysts of the British royal family, no longer belonging to the royal family
The name “Amethyst” comes from the Greek word amethystos, meaning “not drunk”, and has long been recognized for its anti-intoxicating properties.
Early Greek mythology associated the stone with Bacchus, the god of wine, due to the amethyst’s wine-like color.
In ancient Greek mythology, Bacchus, the god of wine, was drunk and mischievous, and when he saw the beautiful maiden Amethyst passing through his path, he conjured up a vicious tiger to pounce on her, and in the midst of the crisis, the maiden called for help from the moon goddess Diana. Diana turned her into a pure stone to protect her. When Bacchus, the god of wine, saw this, he came to his senses and, as an apology, poured wine on Amethyst’s fossilized body, and the stone was transformed into a beautiful amethyst.
The February birthstone amethyst can be found in European and Asian royal collections.
Amethyst used to be among the top five gemstones due to its rarity, and was sought after at the time, even royalty were avid fans of it, and many royal crowns were inlaid with amethyst, which at the same time confirms that amethyst had an exalted status at the time.
The British royal family owns many jewels, and there is no shortage of amethysts. This St. Edward’s Crown is the heaviest of all Queen Elizabeth’s crowns, which is set with 444 precious and semi-precious stones, including 345 aquamarines, 12 rubies, 7 amethysts, and 6 sapphires. The Imperial Crown is used for the monarch’s masques and for the opening of Parliament.
Queen Mary of England owned an amethyst set, but at a later date the jewelry was sent to auction and removed from the royal jewels.
Belonging to the heyday of amethyst in the late 19th century, the more purple amethyst is the more valuable, is one of the most precious gemstones at that time. Purple was favored by European royalty for its elegance and nobility, especially by Queen Elizabeth and Queen Victoria. This brooch, often worn by the Queen, is an amethyst brooch called Kent Amethyst Brooch with Pendants.
This brooch originally belonged to Queen Victoria’s mother, the Duchess of Kent, as part of a set of amethyst accessories. It was later inherited by Queen Victoria, who left the necklace to the royal family when she died in 1901. It passed from one queen to another. Most of the jewelry worn by today’s queens belongs to Crown Jewels.
A full set of Kent amethysts includes a necklace, earrings, hair comb and three brooches.
The Swedish royal family also owns a historic amethyst set, this set of jewelry originally belonged to Napoleon’s first wife, Empress Josephine, as a dowry in Europe a few times, in 1976 Sylvia married into the Swedish royal family after the transformation of this set of jewelry, this set of remodeled jewelry in many large-scale royal occasions have appeared.
Originally an amethyst necklace belonging to Queen Josephine of France, the crown was later converted into a crown by Queen Silvia, and is now used by Princess Victoria of Sweden, who makes more appearances.
The crown below was a gift from Tsar Alexander III Q (Tsar Alexander) to Queen Alexandra.
The crown, by Cartier, is made of amethyst, the main stone, and the base is made of platinum and decorated with diamonds set in the form of a wheat seed, which suggests that amethyst has had a very high place in history.
Edward VIII, Duke of Windsor had commissioned Cartier to customize an amethyst turquoise necklace for the Duchess of Windsor in 1947.
Behind this necklace is the story of a love story that is not in love with the world, but with the beauty of the world. Infamous or notorious, prodigal or not. Edward VIII or Mrs. Simpson, this twice married American woman fell in love at first sight, and eventually let her become the Duchess of Windsor. The Duke of Windsor gave the Duchess of Windsor many jewels, this expensive necklace in which can only be considered ordinary.
This apron style amethyst and turquoise necklace has 27 rectangular amethysts and one heart-shaped amethyst and is set with several turquoise stones. First auctioned in 1987 after the death of the Duchess of Windsor, it was bought back by Cartier in 2014 after two auctions and restored for exhibition.
After the discovery of huge amethyst mines in Brazil in the late 19th century, the price of amethysts fell after they became less rare, and amethysts, which were once reserved for the royal family, became available to ordinary people.
