3 min readNorway is hosting King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium for a two-day state visit this week, which includes a formal state banquet at the Royal Palace in Oslo this evening.
Accompanied by King Harald, Queen Sonja led the procession into the gala dinner. The Queen was wearing what The Court Jeweller describes as one of Norway’s “most important sparklers”: Queen Maud’s Pearl Tiara. It has graced the heads of the last few generations of Norwegian royals. But the secret is that the one seen tonight is actually a replica, not the original. Regardless, this version—and the original one out there—share a fascinating history.
The original tiara was fashioned in 1896, when Great Britain’s King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra commissioned the piece from Garrard, as a wedding gift for their daughter Maud when she married Prince Carl of Denmark. Maud wore it until her death in 1938, having traveled to Britain that year with her jewelry. The tiara remained at Windsor Castle through World War II, and was not returned to Norway until 1953, when the Norwegian royals attended the coronation of Queen Elizabeth. It was later passed to King Harald following his 1968 wedding to Sonja Haraldsen.
Queen Sonja (right) wearing Queen Maud’s original Pearl Tiara, with Queen Elizabeth in what appears to be the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara.
Queen Sonja in the replica tiara at the wedding of Sweden’s Prince Carl Philip and Sofia Hellqvist in 2015.
Queen Sonja wore the original tiara on several occasions, including Queen Elizabeth’s 1981 state visit to Norway. But in 1995, after the tiara was sent to Garrard in London to be cleaned, it was reportedly stolen and was never recovered. Garrard subsequently made a replica of the original, and that is the piece Sonja has worn ever since.
Dressed in a full-length champagne-hued, long-sleeved gown, Queen Mathilde wore the Nine Provinces Tiara, a headpiece that she has worn on several formal occasions as well as for royal portraits. Per The Royal Watcher, the sparkler was a wedding present from the Belgian government to Princess Astrid of Sweden when she married Crown Prince Leopold of Belgium in 1926. The headpiece can actually be broken up and used in two styles: the Art Deco style base can be worn on its own as a bandeau, or as seen on Mathilde at the state banquet, a much more regal setting with its detachable diamond arches.
The Queen seen wearing just the bandeau section to Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia’s wedding.
Queen Mathilde, with Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg, wearing the full tiara in 2024.
Earlier on Tuesday, Crown Prince Haakon welcomed the Belgian King and Queen, dressed in head-to-toe blush pink Dior, at Oslo Airport, followed by a wreath-laying ceremony at the national monument at Akershus Fortress, a medieval castle dating back to the 1290s. They were later joined by King Harald V and Queen Sonja of Norway for an official welcome ceremony outside of the Royal Palace in Oslo’s city center.
Queen Mathilde in a bespoke Dior dress, coat, and hat.
With a focus on safety and sustainability, the Belgian Foreign Affairs Office says the visit will include talks on “situation in Ukraine and the Middle East” as well as “NATO, the transatlantic relationship, security in the Arctic, and the reform of the United Nations.” Norway’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs also said in a statement, “The visit emphasizes the importance of unity between democracies at a time when the geopolitical situation challenges our common values.”
Additionally, Crown Princess Mette-Marit made a surprise appearance inside the palace this afternoon for an official photo. The Norwegian Royal House previously said that the Crown Princess would not be appearing during the state visit due to her deteriorating health. Mette-Marit has dealt with pulmonary fibrosis, a chronic lung disease, since 2018, and is preparing for a lung transplant. However, Mette-Marit did not appear to be at the state banquet this evening hosted at the Royal Palace.
The Belgian state visit comes at a tumultuous time for the Norwegian royal family, particularly the Crown Prince and Princess. Just days ago, Mette-Marit sat down for her first interview addressing her past friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. But Prince Haakon, heir to Norway’s throne, has spoken in her defense, telling Norwegian broadcaster NRK he will “always want her on my team when challenges arise.”
Elsewhere in Oslo on Tuesday, Mette-Marit’s son from a previous relationship, Marius Borg Høiby—who was on trial for rape, assault, and other counts—lost an appeal to be discharged from prison. He will remain in prison until the verdict in June.
Rachel King (she/her) is a news writer at Town & Country. Before joining T&C, she spent nearly a decade as an editor at Fortune. Her work covering travel and lifestyle has appeared in Forbes, Observer, Robb Report, Cruise Critic, and Cool Hunting, among others. Originally from San Francisco, she lives in New York with her wife, their daughter, and a precocious labradoodle. Follow her on Instagram at @rk.passport.