Happy Tiara Tuesday! Today we’re bringing back another of Empress Joséphine’s delightful tiaras! This one is a stunning pearl and cameo tiara making it very unusual in comparison to most tiaras we see today.
Empress Joséphine, wife of Napoleon Bonaparte, likely received this tiara from her husband in 1809. Cameos were much more popular in the early 1800s, and this tiara is a spectacle to behold with its seven cameos composed together with lustrous pearls and gold set all around them. The cameos were not originally made to go together so they have a lot of variation in size and color, but it works really well as a more conservative tiara, with everything in its proper place.
The tiara was passed down from Empress Joséphine to her granddaughter Josephine of Leuchtenberg, bringing the tiara to Sweden through her marriage to the future King Oscar I of Sweden and Norway. Josephine who in turn left it to her daughter Princess Eugénie, who left it to her nephew Prince Eugén, who gave it to Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha when she married Prince Gustaf Adolf in 1932.
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In Sibylla’s hands, a new tradition for the cameo tiara to be worn as a wedding crown was established. It was worn as a wedding crown by Queen Sibylla 1932, by Princess Birgitta in 1961, by Princess Désirée in 1964, by Queen Silvia in 1976, and most recently, by Crown Princess Victoria for her wedding in 2010. It is currently in the hands of King Carl Gustaf, who has generously lent it out to his family for these occasions.
The tiara’s nearly crown shape echoes the Swedish tradition of bridal crowns, and the center cameo depicts the fitting love story of Cupid and Psyche from Greek Mythology. Queen Silvia has continued to provide the tiara with fresh air, bringing it out for numerous tiara-worthy events.
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Thanks for reading and have a fantastic day! Happy Tiara Tuesday!