With just over a week to go the buzz for the Royal wedding is starting and I thought this would be a time to look at some of the engagement rings of the royal family.....
Queen Elizabeth II
Prince Philip designed Queen Elizabeth’s ring himself, with the help of jeweler Philip Antrobus Ltd. It was made in London and features a 3ct ‘old cut’ diamond set in a traditional claw setting in platinum. It has five smaller diamonds on each shoulder. Prince Philip used diamonds taken from a tiara belonging to his mother, Princess Alice of Greece, for the ring.
Diana, Princess of Wales & Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge
Kate Middleton wears Diana’s engagement ring 16 November 2010, the
day she and Prince William announced their engagement
Prince Charles gifted Diana, Princess Of Wales a stunning sapphire engagement ring. So stunning, in fact, Prince William went on to propose to Kate Middleton with that very same ring following Diana’s tragic death in 1997. Created by royal jeweler Garrard & Co Ltd, the ring features 14 solitaire diamonds which surround a Sri Lankan 12-carat oval faceted blue Ceylon sapphire. It is set in 18-karat white gold.
Interestingly, Diana and Kate’s ring was not custom-made like all of the other royal rings featuring in the list. It actually featured in Gerrard’s jewellery collection, available for anyone to buy at the time of Diana’s proposal. Diana had apparently chosen it as she thought it was a beautiful ring and some historians believe it reminded her of her mother, Frances Shand-Kydd, own ring.
Sarah, Duchess of York
When Prince Andrew proposed to Sarah Ferguson in March 1986, he did so with a stunning deep red Burmese ruby stone, which was surrounded by 10 pear cut diamonds and sits on a yellow gold band. Also created by Garrard & Co, it was designed by Prince Andrew himself. He is believed to have selected the ruby to complement Sarah’s red hair.
Princess Eugenie
Princess Eugenie’s ring features a padparadscha sapphire which is surrounded by 10 brilliant cut diamonds and two pear cut diamonds, to give it an edge to the standard cluster. Padparadscha is the name given to the corundum gem that bears a mixture of red and yellow, a sort of cross between a ruby and yellow sapphire.
This beautiful gem is sought-after and treasured by gemstone experts, considered the rarest and most valuable of all the corundum varieties.
Meghan Markle
Last but not least....Prince Harry designed Meghan Markle’s engagement ring himself, using diamonds which belonged to his mother Diana, Princess of Wales. There are two brilliant cut outside stones of around 0.75ct each which came from the late princess’ personal collection. At the centre of the ring is a large, cushion cut diamond of around 3.5cts from Botswana, a country that holds special significance for Harry, who has visited many times since he was a child. It is also a place where the couple had spent time together over the last year and a half, Kensington Palace said.