Queen Camilla Wears 132-Year-Old Royal Heirloom Tied to Queen Elizabeth

It’s been a busy week for the royals, thanks to an unexpected Wales family appearance for VE Day, the unveiling of King Charles and Queen Camilla’s Coronation portraits, and Buckingham Palace’s first garden of the season—and Queen Camilla is taking sartorial inspiration from a regal source. Just hours after donning a poppy red dress and one of Queen Elizabeth’s rarely-seen brooches, Camilla paid homage to the late monarch once again as she wore a 132-year-old royal heirloom with a sweet meaning.

As Queen Camilla and King Charles invited over 30,000 royal fans to enjoy Buckingham Palace’s first garden party of the season on May 7, Camilla appeared to pull a Kate Middleton by rewearing a teal dress with a white lace top peeping out from underneath the plunging, vibrant-colored fabric. The queen’s garden party outfit—which appeared to be the same look she wore for the 2024 Royal Ascot last June, down to her statement matching hat—also featured another familiar element from last summer’s outing: an ornate turquoise and diamond brooch that was pinned to her lapel.

Per The Crown Chronicles, the heirloom jewelry piece is Queen Mary’s turquoise and diamond brooch, which is estimated to be worth about $45,000. Gifted to Princess Mary in 1893 on her wedding day by her parents-in-law, King Edward and Queen Alexandra, the colorful brooch was frequently spotted on Queen Elizabeth’s lapel. The late monarch memorably wore Queen Mary’s turquoise brooch in an address during the pandemic in April 2020, as well as to the Royal Windsor Horse Show in 2021.

 While Queen Camilla has only worn the brooch once before at the June 19 Royal Ascot, which saw her make an appearance with Prince William, it appears she’s been taking a look through Queen Elizabeth’s jewelry collection. One day earlier on May 6, the royal paired the diamond and topaz Raspberry Pip brooch—reportedly one of Queen Elizabeth’s favorite pieces from her private jewelry collection— as she unveiled her and Charles’s official Coronation portraits at the National Gallery.