Buckingham Palace unveils 500 years of royal jewelry, most pieces unseen
The King's Gallery will open a 300-piece show in June 2027, with roughly two-thirds of the jewels on public display for the first time.
The Royal Collection Trust has announced an unprecedented exhibition of British royal jewelry at Buckingham Palace’s King’s Gallery, scheduled to open next summer. Spanning five centuries, the show will present more than 300 pieces stretching from the 16th century onward, with approximately two-thirds making their public debut, according to the trust.
The exhibition, titled Royal Jewellery: From Coronations to Keepsakes, will remain open from June 25, 2027 to March 19, 2028. Tickets go on sale to the public on November 3, 2026. The Crown Jewels, permanently housed at the Tower of London, will not be included in the show.
Jewels on display
Among the pieces appearing are an emerald and diamond necklace once owned by society hostess Dame Margaret Greville, which was left to Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother in 1942. Also featured will be a brooch set with a sapphire and diamonds, a gift Prince Albert presented to Queen Victoria before their 1840 wedding. Queen Victoria’s Small Diamond Crown, fashioned by Garrard in 1870 for wear over a widow’s cap, will also be on view.
A particularly poignant item is a thistle brooch containing the milk tooth of Princess Victoria, Queen Victoria’s eldest daughter. The piece, made in 1847, was inscribed to note that Prince Albert himself extracted the tooth.
The exhibition will also document how these pieces remain in circulation among the royal family. Queen Camilla has worn the Diamond Diadem, originally commissioned for George IV’s coronation, at the State Opening of Parliament. A Fabergé pendant of aquamarine and diamonds, given by Queen Mary to the future Queen Elizabeth II, was later worn by the late Queen as a brooch during a 2015 trip to Malta, according to Town & Country.
Curatorial approach
The show traces how jewelry has shaped the monarchy’s image across generations, drawing on work by royal goldsmiths and maisons such as Garrard, Cartier, Boucheron, and Fabergé. Accompanying the jewelry will be paintings, designs, and papers from the Royal Collection and Royal Archives.
The exhibition’s curators, Caroline de Guitaut and Kathryn Jones, framed the collection’s significance around personal narrative. “Each jewel carries with it a human story: of love and loss, power and politics, family and faith,” they said in a statement. “Together, they have borne witness to the defining moments of royal lives and offer a deeply personal insight into the individuals and relationships that have shaped the monarchy across generations.”
Building on precedent
The jewelry exhibition follows the Royal Collection Trust’s prior success with Queen Elizabeth II: Her Life in Style, which drew record attendance and has been extended through April 18, 2027.
This article was compiled by the Glamorade editorial desk from the official announcements and reporting listed under Sources.
