One of the largest tiaras in the collections of European monarchs is the Queen Sofia tiara. For its unusual shape, the jewelry is also called the “nine-toothed tiara”.

The jewellery was created in the 1860s for Sophia of Nassau, Queen of Sweden and Norway, wife of King Oscar II. It is believed that the basis for the tiara was a diamond comb that belonged to King Charles XIV Johan, the founder of the Bernadotte dynasty. The crest elements are visible in the central part of the jewelry, above them are metal arcs with diamond pavé.

They are also crowned with nine “teeth” with large diamonds, combined with three smaller stones. Despite the outward dazzling beauty, the tiara is very difficult to wear due to the heavy and inflexible metal base. So after the death of Queen Sofia, few women of the Bernadotte dynasty dared to wear it.

Queen Silvia of Sweden will be published today in a tiara. She wears the jewelry twice a year: at the annual Nobel Prize ceremony and a gala banquet in Stockholm.