The Danish Royal Ruby Tiara

A unique tiara and one of the oldest, intact parures still in use and owned by the Danish Royal Family. The story of how this tiara belonged to this family started at the court of Napolean Bonaparte.

When planning his coronation as Emperor of the French in 1804, his intention was the make this event the grandest of all. In order to achieve this, he went so far as to give money to his marshals so that they could buy their wives the perfect jewels for the occasion. Of these men, Jean Baptiste Bernadotte bought a set of ruby and diamond jewelry and tiara for his wife, Désirée Clary.

They later became King Carl XIV Johan and Queen Desideria of Sweden. The tiara passed through many hands, Josefina of Leuchtenberg to finally Crown Princess Mary when she wore it in 2004 for her pre-wedding gala to Frederik, Crown Prince of Denmark.