Denmark isn’t the only country where tiaras traditionally sparkle to ring in the new year. Last week, the Emperor and Empress of Japan hosted New Year receptions at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, with an astonishing range of imperial tiaras on display.
Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako led the family party at this year’s New Year receptions in Tokyo. They were joined by their daughter, Princess Aiko; Crown Prince Fumihito and Crown Princess Kiko with Prince Hisahito and Princess Kako; Princess Tomohito of Mikasa; Princess Akiko and Princess Yoko of Mikasa; and Princess Takamado with Princess Tsuguko.
For the receptions, Empress Masako wore some of the most important diamond jewelry in the imperial collection, including the Meiji Tiara. The classic diadem was made in the nineteenth-century for Empress Haruko, the wife of Emperor Mutsuhito, who reigned during the Japanese empire’s Meiji era.
With the tiara, Masako wore diamond drop earrings and a pair of diamond necklaces. She also used a favorite diamond brooch to secure the sash of the Order of the Precious Crown.
To the left of her mother, Princess Aiko of Japan stood wearing the same set of diamond jewelry that she’s used for gala occasions since her coming-of-age ceremony in 2021. The diamond tiara and its coordinating jewels have been loaned to Aiko by her aunt, Sayako Kuroda. Formerly Princess Sayako, she lost her title when she married a commoner in 2005. She owns her diamond parure personally, so she was able to decide to lend it to her niece. So far, the Imperial Household Agency has not decided to commission a new suite of jewelry for Aiko.
On the other side of the platform, the Emperor’s younger brother, Crown Prince Fumihito, stood with his wife and two of their children. Crown Princess Kiko wore the diamond parure that has been associated for several generations with Japanese crown princesses. Both Empress Michiko and Empress Masako wore it during their wedding celebrations. The suite was worn by Masako until Naruhito’s accession in 2019, and since then Kiko has worn the set exclusively.
Beside her mother, Princess Kako of Akishino wore her own diamond parure. The set was made for her by Mikimoto ahead of her 20th birthday in 2014. The balanced design of the tiara and necklace, which both feature floral and festoon elements, echoes her mother’s imperial emblem, the iris.
The member of the Akishino family who garnered the most attention during this year’s New Year receptions, however, was nineteen-year-old Prince Hisahito of Akishino. He is second in line to the imperial throne after his father, and this was his first appearance at the annual receptions.
There was also another bejeweled symbol of change in the room. Princess Akiko of Mikasa, the granddaughter of the late Prince and Princess Mikasa, has recently been named head of the Mikasa-no-miya branch of the imperial family. It’s the first time that a princess has become head of a family branch in her own right since the nineteenth century. The change comes on the heels of the passing of Princess Mikasa in 2024.
The newly-elevated Akiko wore a different suite of diamond jewels than her usual parure for this year’s receptions. Her tiara is a diamond fringe, and her necklace features a scrolling floral design. Both pieces can apparently be worn either as a tiara or a necklace. Prisma, who chronicles the imperial family on social media, posits that both jewels originally belonged to Princess Itsuko Nashimoto, an aunt of Princess Chichibu.
With Princess Akiko now heading the Mikasa household, her mother, Princess Tomohito of Mikasa, has been moved into her own separate household. The change was visible in the organization of the family members during the receptions, with Princess Tomohito standing beside the Akishino family for the first reception. (Amid all this change it’s also probably worth noting that the Imperial Household Agency has a new Grand Steward, Buichiro Kuroda.)
For the first reception, Princess Tomohito wore the diamond and pearl suite she received on her marriage in 1980. She secured her sash with a gorgeous diamond brooch that looks to be in the shape of a rose.
Princess Tomohito’s younger daughter, Princess Yoko of Mikasa, remains in the main Mikasa household headed by her big sister. She wore her usual diamond and pearl parure for this year’s receptions. She stood between her sister and her aunt, Princess Takamado, who wore a gorgeous purple dress for this year’s celebrations. She accessorized with her diamond and pearl wedding tiara and its mirrored necklace, and she pinned her diamond bird brooch to her order sash. Her daughter, Princess Tsuguko, was elegant in her usual diamond parure, which has a modern leaf design that carries through the tiara, necklace, and earrings.
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