Queen Camilla Is a Master Storyteller With Her State Visit Jewels

By Karen Dybis | April 29, 2026

Queen Camilla has jewelry observers worldwide watching what she is wearing—including a rarely seen suite of heirloom amethyst jewels as well as brooches to die for—during her U.S. visit with her husband, King Charles III.

That is to say, brooch advocates, we have a moment to celebrate. Queen Camilla is providing anyone who doubted the power of jewelry to tell a story a masterclass in how to wear and display meaning with your gems.

Coverage of Camilla’s jewelry game came from everywhere: WWD, Vanity Fair, People, Town & Country, InStyle, Tatler, and even Politico. The four-day visit with Charles and Camilla is celebrating America’s 250th anniversary of independence.

The biggest event may have been Tuesday’s white-tie state banquet at the White House. That is where Queen Camilla balanced her fuchsia pink evening gown with royal jewelry. She passed on the tiara and brought out what The Court Jeweller said is one of the oldest surviving jewelry suites in the royal family’s collection.

Reports say Queen Victoria’s mother, the Duchess of Kent, owned the amethyst and diamond jewelry set. The necklace is made of amethyst and diamond clusters mixed with diamond stars and amethyst shell motifs. According to lore, the late Queen Elizabeth II wore the same suite of jewels during a 1985 state banquet in Portugal.

“Camilla’s decision to wear the amethysts…may have been a little nod to Queen Elizabeth II’s appearance in the full brooch at the White House during her American state visit in the spring of 1991,” The Court Jeweller wrote.

Queen Camilla also wore what looked like a diamond bracelet and a gold chain bracelet on her left wrist. On her right wrist, she had one of Queen Elizabeth II’s bracelets—an art deco Cartier bracelet with rubies and diamonds.

But let’s talk brooches. On Monday, Camilla wore the legendary Union Jack and Stars and Stripes brooch, which features the U.S. flag crossed with the U.K. flag, honoring the relationship between the two nations. In 1957, New York mayor Robert F. Wagner Jr. gave the Cartier piece set with rubies, sapphires, and diamonds to Queen Elizabeth II when she first visited America.

On Tuesday, the queen dressed to impress through her pin choice by sporting the Cullinan V Brooch—one of the Crown’s jewelry pieces that used the Cullinan Diamond, a heart-shape stone weighing in at a reported 18.8 carats. The same diamond—one of the largest ever found—is part of the British crown jewels used at coronations.

Queen Camilla is a definite brooch fan, wearing historic pieces across multiple events, whether it is a movie premiere, Easter Sunday services, or Commonwealth Day. She even wore one in February when she welcomed Dame Anna Wintour for a visit at the beginning of London Fashion Week.

Of course, Queen Elizabeth II was a brooch connoisseur as well, and she created a wonderful legacy for Camilla to continue. In those moments and across this jewelry-laden state visit this week, you just gotta say, even as a Yank: God Save the Queen and her fabulous jewelry choices, indeed. (The late and still-beloved brooch storyteller, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, would be proud.)

The king and queen’s visit will conclude Thursday.

(Top: AP Photo/Alex Brandon)