Kate also wore the stunning Cambridge Lover’s Knot to last year’s reception.
A little more than century old, the tiara was originally commissioned from famous court jewellers Garrard by Queen Mary sometime in 1913 or 1914. It’s actually a replica of a 200-year-old Gothic Revival tiara owned by Mary’s grandmother, Princess Augusta of Hesse, the Duchess of Cambridge.
(Hence the alternate name of “Cambridge Lover’s Knot.”) The original Cambridge Lover’s Knot Tiara was later sold at auction at Christie’s in Geneva in May 1981 for more than $747,000 in today’s dollars to an anonymous buyer and is presumed to be in an unknown private collection.
The stunning tiara wasn’t the only re-wear of the evening. The royal mum opted for the same regal red Jenny Packham dress she wore to her first official state banquet last year.
Kate first attended the annual reception in 2013, where she wore the famous Lotus Flower tiara.
The crown jewel that palace insiders say was loaned to Kate by the Queen from her collection dates back to the Queen’s mother in the 1920s.
“It’s a beautiful pearl and diamond piece,” expert Leslie Field, author of The Queen’s Jewels, says about the Egyptian-style tiara, which was also previously owned and worn by the Queen’s late sister, Princess Margaret. “It’s very much in the ’20s style and probably quite lightweight and comfortable to wear.”
This article originally appeared on PEOPLE.com
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