![Britain's Prince Edward and Sophie, Countess of Wessex attend the wedding of Danish Crown Prince Frederik and Miss Mary Elizabeth Donaldson at Copenhagen Cathedral on May 14, 2004 in Copenhagen, Denmark (Sean Gallup/Getty Images)](https://i0.wp.com/www.thecourtjeweller.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/2023-0114-sophie01.jpg?resize=1200%2C814&ssl=1)
The Countess of Wessex has a small but mighty collection of jewelry, including some pieces with royal provenance. One of the most impressive pieces of that group is the set of diamond clip brooches that she received from her husband’s grandmother, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.
![Queen Elizabeth (the Queen Mother) pictured during a visit to the Lord Roberts' Memorial Workshop for Disabled ex-Servicemen, 1936 (World History Archive/Alamy)](https://i0.wp.com/www.thecourtjeweller.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/2023-0114-sophie02.jpg?resize=1200%2C1611&ssl=1)
Gem-set clips, able to be worn either joined together as a single brooch or separately, were some of the most fashionable jewels in the early years of the Queen Mother’s marriage. She had multiple examples of the style in her collection, including a pair of all-diamond clips with an Art Deco-inspired design. Here, she wears the diamond clips joined together as a single brooch on her hat in 1936.
![Sophie, Countess of Wessex during day two of Royal Ascot at Ascot Racecourse on June 18, 2014 in Ascot, England (Chris Jackson/Getty Images for Ascot Racecourse)](https://i0.wp.com/www.thecourtjeweller.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/2023-0114-sophie09.jpg?resize=580%2C718&ssl=1)
Here’s a close-up of the clips from many decades later. You’ll note the typical curve of the clips at the center of the brooch, as well as the geometric diamond cuts used throughout.
![Queen Elizabeth (the Queen Mother) arrives at a theater performance in London to celebrate the birthday of the Duke of Kent, 20 Dec 1938 (Associated Press Photo/Sydney Morning Herald/SuperStock/Alamy)](https://i0.wp.com/www.thecourtjeweller.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/2023-0114-sophie03.jpg?resize=1200%2C1602&ssl=1)
Elizabeth also wore her clips separately, scattering them on her clothing and her accessories. Here, in December 1938, she wears one of the diamond clips as a hair accessory during a trip to the theater.
![British Prince Edward waves to well-wishers as his future wife Sophie Rhys Jones and the Queen Mother look on as they travel in an open top horse-drawn carriage during Trooping the Colour ceremony in London on Saturday, 12 June 1999 (DYLAN MARTINEZ/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)](https://i0.wp.com/www.thecourtjeweller.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/2023-0114-sophie04.jpg?resize=1200%2C818&ssl=1)
In the spring of 1999, as her youngest grandson, Prince Edward, prepared for his royal wedding, Elizabeth decided to pass the clips along to the newest member of the family. She gave the antique diamond jewels to Edward’s new wife, Sophie Rhys-Jones, as a wedding present.
![Recently wed Sophie Rhys-Jones, Countess of Wessex, stands beside her brother-in-law, Prince Andrew, during a family photograph on the occasion of the Queen Mother's 99th birthday at her London residence, Clarence House, 4 August 1999 (JONATHAN UTZ/AFP via Getty Images)](https://i0.wp.com/www.thecourtjeweller.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/2023-0114-sophie05.jpg?resize=1200%2C1876&ssl=1)
Fittingly, one of Sophie’s first public appearances in the clip brooches took place at the Queen Mother’s 99th birthday celebration at Clarence House a few weeks after the royal wedding. She wore them as separate brooches, both pinned to her white jacket, for the occasion.
![Sophie Wessex chats with British Prime minister Tony Blair as her husband Prince Edward waves to the crowd at the closing ceremony of the XVII Commonwealth games in Manchester, 4 August 2002 (ODD ANDERSEN/AFP via Getty Images)](https://i0.wp.com/www.thecourtjeweller.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/2023-0114-sophie06.jpg?resize=1200%2C1632&ssl=1)
But she has also frequently worn them joined together as a single brooch, as she did at the Commonwealth Games in Manchester in 2002.
![The Countess of Wessex arrives at Fredensborg Palace for Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary of Denmark's wedding banquet, 14 May 2004 (CLAUS FISKER/AFP via Getty Images)](https://i0.wp.com/www.thecourtjeweller.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/2023-0114-sophie07.jpg?resize=1200%2C1682&ssl=1)
When the Wessexes represented the royal family at the Danish royal wedding in May 2004, Sophie wore the clips pinned to the neckline of her evening gown. She also wore her wedding tiara (which has since been remodeled).
![The Countess of Wessex arrives at Kew Palace in west London, 21 April 2006, to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II's 80th birthday (JOHN STILLWELL/AFP via Getty Images)](https://i0.wp.com/www.thecourtjeweller.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/2023-0114-sophie11.jpg?resize=1200%2C1833&ssl=1)
For me, clip brooches are often at their most effective when they’re pinned at the neckline of a gown. Sophie wore the diamond clips this way in April 2006 for Queen Elizabeth II’s 80th birthday party in London.
![Sophie, Countess of Wessex during day two of Royal Ascot at Ascot Racecourse on June 18, 2014 in Ascot, England (Chris Jackson/Getty Images for Ascot Racecourse)](https://i0.wp.com/www.thecourtjeweller.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/2023-0114-sophie08.jpg?resize=1200%2C1754&ssl=1)
But these days, the clips are most frequently spotted on Sophie at Royal Ascot, usually worn together as a single brooch. She wears them in the single brooch format here at Ascot in June 2014.
![Sophie, Countess of Wessex arrives for day 2 of Royal Ascot at Ascot Racecourse on June 17, 2015 in Ascot, England (Chris Jackson/Getty Images)](https://i0.wp.com/www.thecourtjeweller.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/2023-0114-sophie10.jpg?resize=1200%2C1832&ssl=1)
And here, she wears them the same way for Royal Ascot in June 2015.
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