Borrowing an item for a wedding is a long-held tradition, and now a bride can wear the 45-carat diamond tiara that Lady Mary Crawley of “Downtown Abbey” wore during her marriage ceremony in the beginning of the show’s third season.
via Daily Mail
For approximately $2,000 per day, the antique jewel and engagement ring retailer Bentley & Skinner will lend the Georgian-style headdress that has a floral and garland motif. The $200,000 deposit required may limit the number of women who can actually afford to mimic the appearance of the bride in the PBS drama’s famous marital union.
The tiara design complemented the wedding episode with the art deco style on a yellow gold mount. It also can be transformed into two brooches or used as a headband.
The 1920s wedding was an understated event. The guests wore elegant, conservative attire, and the tiara offered a touch of luxury and bold refinement.
Founded in 1880, Bentley & Skinner began developing jewelry for the Royal Family during Queen Victoria’s reign. The office and showroom are located at 55 Piccadilly.
The “Downtown Abbey” series is based in the post-Edwardian era following the reign of King Edward the VII that ended in 1910. The setting is the Downtown Abbey estate, where the Crawley family lives and experiences significant events of history, such as the tragic sinking of the Titanic ship, World War I and the Teapot Dome scandal.
Well-regarded as a historical television drama, “Downton Abbey” has won a Golden Globe award for a Best Miniseries and other prominent awards. It has a wide viewing audience, and the opportunity to emulate its star would correspondingly provide many delightful opportunities for its fans.
An aristocratic air that has inspired the imaginations of viewers mainly in the U.S. and the U.K., is perhaps the most compelling quality that links the nuptial jewelry with the show. However, considering the 10.2 million viewership of the most recent fourth season release in early 2014, perhaps only one tiara will not be enough to satisfy the show’s fan-base.
A period production requires a higher than usual level of consultants and historical accuracy, which is partly the reason it inspires so many fans to watch it as the events familiar from history unfold in the context of a familiar set of characters. A piece of jewelry is generally only an accessory, but in the case of the wedding tiara, it symbolizes a veil of elegance and nobility that the character represents on the show, and a nod to the innocent simplicity refinement of the art deco era, which is essentially the quality central to the show’s value.
Perhaps also symbolic is that the unified tiara can also be separated into two brooches, foreshadowing a time when the show’s marital bliss will falter.
Fans remain romantically tied to its historical context and romance that depict a meaningful time in world events.
An art deco or 1920s themed wedding would easily incorporate a “Downtown Abbey” tiara, a line of flapper bridemaids, and a period car for exiting to the honeymoon.
