B
y now, the whole world probably knows about the Prince William and Kate Middleton engagement. As much as the engagement is big news in itself, the ring the Prince gave to his Princess is just as newsy. With its oval blue sapphire surrounded by a cluster of 14 diamonds, the ring is among the most famous in the world.
Lady Diana Spencer chose it for her engagement to Prince Charles in 1981 from a selection presented to her by the then Crown jewellers Garrard of Mayfair. It cost £28 500 but, unusually for a choice by a member of the Royal Family, it was not unique and any member of the public could buy the same ring from the Garrard catalogue.While not everyone could afford to buy such a rock – the large central stone is a 12-carat oval Ceylon sapphire and the solitaire diamonds elegantly surrounding it are set in 18-carat white gold – Diana’s choice sparked a trend for similar-looking rings. Sapphires were one of the late princess’s favourite gemstones, and some commentators say she chose it because it reminded her of her mother’s engagement ring.Before the Princess of Wales’s death in the 1997 Paris car crash, the ring was valued at more than £250 000 because of its connection to the royals, and in particular Diana. Yesterday William, who eventually inherited the ring from his mother’s £21million estate, showed the family heirloom is priceless to him by choosing it for his fiancée. ‘It’s very special to me. As Kate’s very special to me now, it was right to put the two together,’ he said. ‘It was my way of making sure my mother didn’t miss out on today and the excitement, and the fact that we’re going to spend the rest of our lives together.’Last night, leading royal jewellery expert Leslie Field, who has written authorised books on the Queen’s jewels, described it as an ‘interesting choice’. She said Diana selected the engagement ring after dinner with Charles at Windsor Castle, adding: ‘The man from Garrard’s had been asked to bring a tray of possible choices to show the prince and lady Diana.’She had obviously already said she would like a sapphire, she had half a dozen rings and she chose this one purely because she liked it. Somebody came up with the story that she immediately went for the biggest, but I asked her and she told me it definitely wasn’t the biggest, she simply thought it was very beautiful. But while she admired the beauty of the ring, Diana did have one concern about displaying it to the public. She was very self-conscious,’ said the expert. ‘She had bitten her nails and knew she would have to hold out her hand to show off the ring.’Following Diana’s untimely death, it was actually Prince Harry who first took the ring. The grieving young brothers made a visit to Kensington Palace and selected mementos from their mother’s possessions. Then aged just 12, Harry chose the sapphire ring, while William, 15, chose Diana’s £18 000 yellow gold Cartier Tank Francaise watch.- www.dailymail.co.uk
