Queen Letizia’s Spectacular Pearl and Diamond State Banquet Tiara

Today in Spain, Queen Letizia celebrates her birthday. To mark the occasion, let’s take a closer look at a particularly glittering state banquet appearance from a year ago, when she dazzled in an heirloom tiara in Amsterdam.

In April 2024, the King and Queen of Spain traveled to Amsterdam for a state visit with the royal family of the Netherlands. They were warmly welcomed by King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima, as well as Princess Beatrix, Princess Amalia, and Princess Margriet, who all attended a state banquet at the Royal Palace on the first evening of the visit.

Queen Letizia wore a vibrant royal blue ballgown for the banquet. The dress was made by the Spanish fashion brand The 2nd Skin Co, which was founded in 2006 by the designers Juan Carlos Fernández and Antonio Burillo. The brilliant color of the dress provided a perfect background for the golden yellow and royal blue sash of the Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau, which she received during the visit.

With the gown and decorations, Letizia wore a special collection of heirloom jewels with a long history in the Spanish royal world. Her tiara, an imposing yet delicate diamond and pearl tiara with a looping design, was made in the nineteenth century for Queen Maria Cristina, the second wife of King Alfonso XII and mother of King Alfonso XIII.

The tiara passed through several generations of the family, with a long tenure in the jewelry box of the Countess of Barcelona, before returning to the main line of the family a quarter century ago. Letizia wore the tiara for the first time in public in 2018.

Letizia also added jewels that belonged to the late Queen Victoria Eugenie, King Felipe VI’s great-grandmother. Queen Ena amassed an amazing collection of personal jewels, which she organized into a grouping called the joyas de pasar in her will. She indicated that the jewels should pass as a collection from monarch to monarch, to be worn by the woman holding the title of Queen of Spain.

The enormous diamond earrings worn by Letizia for the state banquet and the classic pearl and diamond cluster and drop brooch are all part of the joyas de pasar collection. The diamond earrings were wedding gifts to Queen Ena from her husband, King Alfonso XIII, in 1906. The brooch, which was one of Ena’s favorites, is set with a large silvery-gray pearl, and it can be worn with or without its pendant drop.

The dazzling moment when the royals rose for a toast, with both Queen Máxima and Queen Letizia sparkling away in their incredible tiaras. You can read more about all of the glittering tiaras and jewels—including the Stuart Tiara!—worn for the state banquet in our earlier article on the event.

Now, before I go today, some notes on the content coming up this week. I’m planning to cover a whole range of royal events this week as they happen, including Prinsjesdag in the Netherlands and the funeral of the Duchess of Kent in London, which both take place tomorrow. There’s also the American state visit coming up later in the week. Those posts will not be scheduled as usual but will be covered as the events take place.

I plan to handle the American visit in the same way that I covered the 2019 state visit, with a strict focus on the royal jewelry worn for the occasion. Without saying much more, I’ll note that this place has been a respite for me in recent years, just as I know it has been for so many of you, and I appreciate your cooperation in keeping the comments as focused as I keep the content. I’ll see you all back here throughout the week. Cross your fingers for some good tiaras!