Speaker: Andrew Prince
4 April 2023
In this talk Andrew shows that following the turbulent political times between 1870 and 1929 which culminated in the final collapse of the Russian and European monarchies, countless astonishing art and jewel collections were dispersed, looted or sold.
Fortunately this coincided with the growing wealth and power of America and its industrial millionaires who were intent on creating sumptuous palaces of their own and filling them with the greatest paintings and furniture, together with weighing down their wives and daughters with the finest of recently purchased royal jewels.
In this talk, Andrew explains how these fabulously wealthy heiresses then married into the British aristocracy, bringing many of these treasures with them. He shows how, with the decline of aristocratic power and the British Empire, these legendary jewels have again been parted from their owners and can now to be seen by everyone in the world’s great museums.
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Andrew’s taste for fine costume jewellery can be traced back to an antique market where he came across a late Victorian brooch set with what he initially thought were emeralds and diamonds. They were in fact crystal and green glass set in silver and gold. He realised that beautiful jewellery didn’t require expensive stones but that it was the elegance of the design and the quality of the workmanship that truly mattered.
In 2002 the V&A commissioned a collection of jewels to accompany the resplendent Tiaras, Past and Present exhibition which became one of its most popular exhibits.
In 2005 he was asked to make tiaras and jewellery for the film Mrs Henderson Presents starring Judy Dench. In 2009 pieces were commissioned for The Young Victoria starring Emily Blunt and Miranda Richardson. In 2012, he was chosen by the creators of Downton Abbey to supply a large collection of jewellery for the third series. The characters played by Maggie Smith, Shirley Maclaine, Elizabeth McGovern and Michelle Dockery were all adorned with elegant tiaras, combs, earrings and necklaces designed and created by Andrew.