Las joyas de la Reina Isabel II de España

Abstract

The jewelry of Spanish Queen Isabella II was superb. Her special personality together with her peculiar biography are the reasons why she invested such a huge capital on it, even being aware about the delicate economic situation of both the country and the Royal House. However, the jewels that can be recognized and attributed with all certainty to her ownership are just a few. Much of the collection went missing in sales and loans as a result of her economic excesses. The same goes for the remaining pieces that were unavoidably scattered when they were divided among her heirs after her death in 1904. This work analyzes, in chronological order, the jewels that joined the Queeńs jewel case by acquisitions, inheritances or gifts, as well as those which ceased to belong to her because they were gifted, destroyed, lost or sold, as already mentioned. The jewels made by both Spanish and foreign most famous jewellers had an outstanding importance. Many of those shared the honour of enjoying a charge, just honorary on some occasions, in the Royal House. Also they were allowed to use the royal arms on their invoices. But they were also concerned about the possibility that their business might be in danger because of the debts contracted by the Sovereign. From Paris, the epicentre of elegance and sophistication, the innovations characterizing the jewellery of the 19th Century were disseminated all around. These innovations are well recognisable in Isabella of Bourbońs jewels, and can be summarised in the following: the predilection for nature-inspired motifs, the exaltation of sentimental topics, the utilization of new materials and techniques as a consequence of the industrial progress, the influence of colonialism at all levels and the emulation of past models...