Queen Mary and King Frederik X of Denmark’s eldest daughter Princess Isabella has shared a new picture wearing her first ever tiara.
To mark her 18th birthday on 21 April, the royal family released a stunning series of official birthday portraits of the princess.
The pictures taken in the Knight’s Hall of Frederick VIII’s Palace in Amalienborg by photographer Steen Evald were shared to the Danish royal family’s website and social media accounts on Isabella’s birthday.
The following day on 22 April, the Princess released an additional candid image to the Danish royal family’s social media channels, which showed the relatable teenage princess holding her iPhone while decked out in her tiara and royal regalia.
The caption alongside the latest image saw the Princess issuing a heartfelt ‘thank you’ to everyone who had ‘helped me celebrate my 18th birthday’.
It was also significantly the first time a social media message on the family’s account was signed off personally as ‘H.K.K Prinsesse Isabella’.
The gorgeous new portrait series officially marked the first time the teenage princess has worn a tiara.
The Danish Royal House confirmed that former monarch Queen Margrethe II gifted her granddaughter the turquoise daisy bandeau diadem as an 18th birthday gift.
This official 18th birthday portrait of Princess Isabella was taken in the Knight’s Hall of Frederick VIII’s Palace in Amalienborg and features her wearing the turquoise daisy bandeau tiara
Princess Isabella thanked royal fans for the 18th birthday well-wishes by sharing this additional candid social media image that showed her wearing the turquoise daisy bandeau tiara while using her iPhone
A translated statement from the royal household explained: ‘The tiara is a so-called ‘bandeau’, a headband in French, as the relatively narrow tiara is intended to be worn almost horizontally as a hair band.’
The statement explained that the floral headpiece is made of gold and adorned with 11 rosettes of ‘daisy-like flowers’ that decrease in size.
The delicate headpiece has added sentimental value because it features precious gems in a flower setting arrangement. This is significant because Queen Margrethe’s nickname amongst he inner circle is ‘Daisy’.
The tiara is a family heirloom, with the royal statement expanding on the history of the bejewelled piece.
‘The tiara was made in the late 19th century and belonged to Crown Princess Margareta of Sweden. After her untimely death in 1920, her daughter, Princess Ingrid, received the tiara as a confirmation gift and brought it to Denmark upon her marriage to the later Frederik IX.’
The statement added that it was a versatile and convertible headpiece. ‘Like many other pieces of the Royal House’s jewelry, the tiara has multiple functions, as it can be disassembled and used as a bracelet’.
According to The Court Jeweller, the young royal’s new tiara forms part of a turquoise parure, which refers to a set of matching jewels.
Interestingly, Isabella’s mother Queen Mary is the current owner of the matching turquoise drop earrings and brooch from the parure, which were gifted to her by Queen Margrethe on her 50th birthday.
Queen Mary (left) loaned her daughter Princess Isabella the matching turquoise earrings for the portrait picture. They are from the same parure as the daisy bandeau tiara, and both were gifted by Queen Margrethe. She is pictured (right) wearing them previously at a 2012 state dinner.
Naturally, Mary, 53, happily loaned the earrings to her eldest daughter to wear for her 18th birthday portrait photoshoot.
Mary was recently seen wearing the same earrings when she attended King Charles III’s coronation in May 2023.
Meanwhile, Queen Margrethe, 85, has also previously been seen wearing the turquoise daisy bandeau tiara that she’s now gifted to Isabella. For instance, she wore it at a 2012 state banquet dinner she hosted in honour of the visiting Chinese President.
Margrethe has also occasionally loaned the delicate tiara out to family members, including her niece Princess Theodora of Greece and Denmark, who borrowed the headpiece to wear during the then-Queen’s Ruby Jubilee celebrations.
For the new portraits, Isabella donned a regal orange satin gown created by up and coming Danish designer, Carina Grønning.
The teen princess also showcased her significant Order of the Elephant sash and regalia on top of the dress as well as a miniature portrait of King Frederik.
The picture of her monarch father is set in a gold frame encircled by 12 white pearls and 12 small diamond crosses, symbolizing the Order of Dannebrog. The portrait was painted in watercolour on a thin slice of mammoth ivory by British miniaturist Tom Mulliner.
The new portrait images of Princess Isabella were shared on the Danish royal website and social media accounts alongside the caption: ’18 years ago today Her Royal Highness Princess Isabella was born’.
‘The birthday itself is marked with the publication of the Princess’s first official gala portraits.’
‘The princess is photographed in the Knight’s Hall of Frederick VIII’s Palace in Amalienborg, and on the portraits Her Royal Highness wears the Order of the Elephant with a star chest… and a miniature Order portrait of her father, His Majesty the King.’
