{"id":220867,"date":"2026-05-05T17:19:12","date_gmt":"2026-05-05T17:19:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/220867\/"},"modified":"2026-05-05T17:19:12","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T17:19:12","slug":"queen-letizia-wears-diamond-necklace-earrings-with-long-royal-history-in-barcelona","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/220867\/","title":{"rendered":"Queen Letizia Wears Diamond Necklace, Earrings With Long Royal History in Barcelona"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Estimated2 min read<\/p>\n

Queen Letizia wore one of Spain\u2019s most historically significant sets of jewels to a ceremony in Barcelona on Monday. Appearing at a 50th anniversary celebration for the Spanish newspaper El Pa\u00eds at Barcelona\u2019s Maritime Museum, the Queen complemented her little black dress<\/a> from Spanish brand Mango with a diamond chaton necklace and earrings that once belonged to Queen Victoria Eugenia, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria<\/a> who reigned as Spain\u2019s queen consort during one of the country\u2019s most turbulent political periods.<\/p>\n

\"SpanishCarlos Alvarez\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

A closeup of Queen Letizia\u2019s jewelry.<\/p>\n

The pieces are part of the \u201cjoyas de pasar,<\/a>\u201d a collection of jewels passed down by queens regnant and queens consort in the Spanish royal family. The pendant at the center of the necklace was originally a gift from King Alfonso XIII to Victoria Eugenia ahead of their 1906 wedding. According to Vanity Fair Espa\u00f1a<\/a>, the General Archive of the Royal Palace holds the invoice from Madrid jeweler Ansorena certifying the purchase, with the necklace listed as \u201ca rivi\u00e8re necklace with 30 diamonds in settings and silver.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"DonUniversal History Archive\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Queen Victoria Eugenia, wearing the jewels, with King Alfonso XIII in an undated royal portrait.<\/p>\n

Mounted in the Russian chaton style and set in platinum, Alfonso XIII continued to add diamonds to the piece over the years, presenting Victoria Eugenia with two additional stones for each anniversary, birth, or birthday\u2014reportedly after extramarital indiscretions. (Thus, how the necklace slowly grew from a choker seen in Victoria Eugenia\u2019s portrait to the slightly longer version Letizia wears now.) A matching pair of chaton-style earrings was later created to complement the necklace.<\/p>\n

\"73rdEuropa Press News\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Queen Letizia, with King Felipe while wearing just the earrings with her Carolina Herrera dress, in 2024.<\/p>\n

Letizia has brought out these heirlooms before; among the more recent occasions was the 2024 Planeta Novel Prize Gala<\/a>, a literary prize ceremony in Barcelona, for which she wore the earrings alone. The pieces appeared most recently in the official portraits of King Felipe and Queen Letizia photographed by Annie Leibovitz<\/a>, in which Letizia paired the jewels with a 1948 Balenciaga black pleated silk tulle gown and a pink silk evening cape originally worn to the 1962 wedding of King Juan Carlos I and Princess Sophia of Greece.<\/p>\n

\"Headshot<\/p>\n

Rachel King (she\/her) is a news writer at\u00a0Town & Country. Before joining\u00a0T&C, she spent nearly a decade as an editor at\u00a0Fortune. Her work covering travel and lifestyle has appeared in\u00a0Forbes,\u00a0Observer,\u00a0Robb Report, Cruise Critic, and\u00a0Cool 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\u00a0@rk.passport<\/a>.<\/p>\n