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Napoleon's Crown Persian Turquoise & Diamond Diadem of Marie-Louise

Tiara of Empress Marie-Louise

This diamond and Persian turquoise studded crown or "diadem" was part of the "parure" (pah-rur), or suite of royal jewelry that was a wedding gift from Napoleon to his bride Empress Marie-Louise. The crown originally contained emeralds instead of Persian turquoise. The crown was taken to Austria by Marie-Louise after the fall of the empire, and the abdication of Napoleon in 1814, and remained in her collection through her rule as the Duchess of Pharma.

Van Cleef & Arpels purchased the emerald and diamond diadem from Archduchess Alice Elisabeth and her son Archduke Karl Stefan in the early 1950, and the emeralds were replaced with Persian turquoises of matching sizes and shapes.

The original emeralds were re-set by Van Cleef & Arpels into contemporary jewelry and marketed with the slogan, "An emerald for you from the historic Napoleonic tiara." The Marie-Louise tiara is now located at the Smithsonian Institution's American Museum of Natural History in Washington DC.

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