Description
In April 2017, during a Japan State visit, Queen Letizia of Spain debuted her mother-in-law Queen Sofia’s ‘Saudi’ Ruby earrings at the official welcome ceremony at the Imperial Palace. Part of a set that also has a matching necklace, the earrings were a gift to Queen Sofia from the Saudi Arabian Royal Family.
The exact year of the gift is unknown but The Royal Watcher believes it could be either in 1977 when King Juan and Queen Sofia made a state visit to Saudi Arabia or in 1981 when they received a state visit from the Saudi Royal Family. Queen Sofia was seen wearing the suite in the 1980s only and then almost 3 decades later, her daughter-in-law, Queen Letizia, rescued the gorgeous pair of earrings from the Spanish Royal Jewel Vault.
Sometimes referred to as Saudi Ruby ‘Dove’ earrings, the stunning jewellery piece features a shape of a diamond-studded dove holding a ruby wreath in its beak. The matching necklace features two doves holding a ruby wreath from their beaks in a beaded ruby chain.
Letizia repeated the earrings in July 2017 during the UK State visit when she visited Clarence House to meet the then Prince Charles of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall.
In 2018 at the 40th anniversary of the Spanish Constitution, Queen Letizia again wore the earrings with a red Carolina Herrera dress. The earrings, despite having a not-so-serene link to Saudi, ended up being a sartorial node with a dove and wreath – symbols of peace, victory and honour.
We again saw the earrings at the end of the Morocco visit in February 2019 paired with another Carolina Herrera ensemble.
Since their debut in April 2017, Letizia has kept the earrings for special occasions only – State visits or official events. The earrings made their most recent appearance in October 2019 during another state visit. This time in South Korea with a Temperley London dress.