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Of all the beautiful jewels in her possession, sapphires are the ones which will always be associated with Diana, Princess of Wales — not least because of her stunning engagement ring, which now sparkles on the hand of her daughter-in-law, the Duchess of Cambridge.

But Diana’s sapphire collection was far more eclectic and interesting than it is often thought. From a suite of sapphires from a wedding guest she had never met to the brooch she turned into a choker and the necklace she decided to wear on her head, each of her pieces bears a fascinating story that reveals so much about the Princess.

Legend has it that the history of empires and sapphires are intertwined, none more so than the British Empire, with many a battle being fought over vaults of the precious blue stones. Indeed, sapphire-encrusted crowns, sceptres, orbs, swords and rings form a major part of the Crown Jewels even today — as well as the personal jewellery collections of many royal ladies.

This dazzling diamond necklace was a wedding gift from the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, a man she had never met, and was by far the most magnificent of her 12,000 wedding presents. Made by Asprey, the suite comprised a huge Burmese sapphire pendant set in a jagged sunray fringe of diamonds

The regal love of the gem, said to symbolise love and purity, dates back to 1840, when Prince Albert gave Queen Victoria a diamond and sapphire brooch to mark their wedding, a moment so touching the monarch wrote about it in her private diary remarking: ‘My dear Albert has such good taste.’

Queen Elizabeth II inherited the brooch when she ascended the throne in 1952, adding it to a substantial sapphire stash of her own, including a showstopping suite from her father, a brooch given to her by her mother and her favourite Cartier flower spray pin, containing light blue sapphires and rubies, which she received from both her parents in 1945.

Diana, meanwhile, adored the blue stones because they matched her eyes. She went from not owning a single sapphire to having more of the ostentatious stones than any other gem.

Here, for the first time ever, we reveal the secrets behind her showstopping sapphires . . .

Wedding gift from guest she’d never met

Perhaps her most dazzling suite of sapphires and diamonds was a wedding gift from the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia — the necklace, shown above, was the only diamond necklace Diana owned (the rest were on loan), as well as the most magnificent by far of her 12,000 wedding presents.

Made by Asprey, the suite comprised a huge Burmese sapphire pendant set in a jagged sunray fringe of diamonds and hung on a thin diamond tennis necklace; matching earrings and a bracelet, and a sapphire-studded watch, the strap of which contained seven oval-shaped sapphires set in clusters of diamonds.

Diana wore various parts of the suite on their own and in combination.

The jewels came in a green malachite casket engraved with a gold palm tree and crossed swords (the Saudi Arabian national symbol) set with gem-studded leaves and a jewelled butterfly on each corner.

When the Princess first laid eyes on the magnificent gems, she was said to be utterly overwhelmed, exclaiming: ‘Gosh! I don’t even know this man!’

The Arabian sapphires Kate reinvented

These earrings — a single Saudi Arabian sapphire surrounded by ten round diamonds — became Diana’s favourites, worn to mark Prince Harry’s birth in 1984. 

They’re believed to have come from the strap of the watch she was given as a wedding present from the Saudi Crown Prince, recognisable because of the rare faceted sapphires. 

Diana's favourite earring were these Saudi Arabian sapphires surrounded by ten diamond. They were worn to mark Prince Harry's birth in 1984 and later given by Prince William to Kate to mark their engagement in 2010

The earrings originally featured four sapphire and diamond clusters — two of which were detachable pendant drops — but Diana preferred to wear the earrings without the extra sapphires. 

The earrings became part of Diana’s bequest to her sons. Shortly after their engagement in 2010, Prince William gave them to Kate, who put her own twist on them with a drop style.

The story behind Diana's iconic stone

Undoubtedly the sapphire Diana wore most — second only to her engagement ring — was the eye-catching seven-strand choker with a gleaming, diamond-surrounded blue stone in its centre.

Dubbed ‘the necklace that stunned the world’ on its debut in 1985, at her brother Lord Althorp’s 21st birthday at Spencer House in London, the central sapphire actually started life as a brooch, given to the Princess by the Queen Mother to mark her engagement.

Eye-catching: This huge and distinctive oval stone originated in Sri Lanka and was worn as brooch by Diana for a banquet at Hampton Court Palace in 1982. Diana was not a fan of brooches however and had it refashioned into ‘the necklace that stunned the world' shortly after

The huge oval stone originated in Sri Lanka, which accounts for a quarter of global sapphire sales, and may even have been mined from the same location as the stone in Diana’s engagement ring. The intense blue colour and high lustre of the stones makes Sri Lankan sapphires very distinctive — and the most sought-after in the world.

Brooches were Diana’s least favourite style of jewellery. She thought them old-fashioned and ageing, so she wore the piece only twice, most memorably to adorn her formal regalia at a royal banquet at Hampton Court hosted by Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands in 1982.

Early the following year, Diana had it refashioned — most likely with the help of the Spencer family jeweller Collingwood — into a choker. The oval stone set amid seven strands of shimmering pearls became one of her most iconic pieces of jewellery, which she continued to wear even after her divorce, often paired with sapphire or pearl drop earrings.

It was no coincidence that this was the piece she chose to wear with the infamous ‘revenge dress’, the form-fitting black gown by Christina Stambolian, which she debuted at the Serpentine Gallery’s summer party in June 1994, the same night as Prince Charles admitted his infidelity on TV.

Earrings that marked new start post separation

In January 1995 Diana made a 24-hour visit to New York’s Lincoln Center to present her friend, Harper’s Bazaar editor Liz Tilberis, with a fashion award.

It may have been a whistlestop trip, but Diana didn’t stint on style. Wearing a sleek midnight blue Catherine Walker gown, her hair slicked back in a ‘duckbill’ do, she finished her new look with striking sapphire and diamond drop earrings. 

Their provenance is unknown, but they’re thought to have been a gift from a Spencer family member after her separation from Charles. 

Diana opted to team ‘the necklace that stunned the world' with these striking sapphire and diamond drop earrings during a 24-hour visit to New York in 1995. She also chose to wear them for a Vogue cover shoot to mark her 33rd birthday in 1994

Both sapphires are surrounded by diamond ‘petals’, with a single diamond on the chain, made from pink ‘angel skin’ coral, in between. 

The stones are ‘cabochons’, meaning they have been polished but not faceted, giving a softer, less reflective finish. 

Diana liked to wear them with black, which truly emphasised the beauty of the blue stones — as she did in the summer of 1995 when she persuaded opera singer Luciano Pavarotti to sing at a fundraising concert in Cardiff for a hospice charity. 

She also chose to wear them for a Vogue cover shoot to mark her 33rd birthday. 

Relaxed and confident, Diana positively beamed out of the 1994 cover in a powerful portrait taken by Patrick Demarchelier,her favourite photographer.

A stunning bracelet from suitor Dodi?

Elegant in a white lace dress and matching satin clutch, Diana showed off a new sapphire bracelet at a gala dinner in Washington in September 1996.

Elegant in a white lace dress and matching satin clutch, Diana showed off a new sapphire bracelet at a gala dinner in Washington in September 1996. The bracelet featured eight oval- shaped sapphires surrounded by twinkling diamonds

The bracelet, featuring eight oval- shaped sapphires surrounded by twinkling diamonds, may have been a gift from Dodi Al Fayed, to whom the now-divorced Princess was becoming increasingly close. However, their relationship did not become official until the following July.

Never one to underdo it, on her other wrist, Diana wore the sapphire bracelet she received as a wedding gift from the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, as well as the sunray diamond and sapphire earrings from the same set, which were set off beautifully by her white, exquisitely beaded dress.

How she made her engagement ring safe for baby William

Despite being the envy of many a woman in Britain — and more than a few royal brides, too — Diana’s sapphire engagement sparkler simply wasn’t suitable for being around a boisterous baby.

The 12-carat sapphire and its diamond surround had sharp, pointy edges, making it impractical for a hands-on new mum, who worried she might scratch young William.

Diana's sapphire engagement sparkler had sharp, pointy edges, making it inpractical for a hands-on new mum. In official photos, taken when William was only six months old, she opted for a stand-in — a polished sapphire cabochon with rounded edges - which was indistinguishable from the original

In official photographs taken with Charles at Kensington Palace in December 1982, when the prince was just six months old, Diana swapped her ring for a stand-in — a polished sapphire cabochon with rounded edges — which was indistinguishable from the original to all but the keenest observer (and the Camera Press photographer, whom she asked not to zoom in too closely).

She paired it with a pretty necklace, made by jeweller Collingwood, comprising cultured pearls set in diamonds, which Charles had given to her as a ‘thank you’ gift to mark William’s birth.

The ring swap left the Princess unencumbered to play freely with her chubby-cheeked young Prince, lifting him up in the air as he squealed with delight — just like any other proud mum. Though she never wore it again in public, the gem may well have become a handy substitute in private.

How the Princess gave her heirlooms a new lease of life - Choker she turned into a head band

Another of the pieces made from reset sapphires from the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia suite was a stylish midnight blue velvet choker.

The oval sapphire came from the ring, and the surrounding diamond sunray frame from the watch. A three-deep chain of tiny diamonds was added on either side to run halfway along the velvet. Though she had more than enough diamonds and sapphires to run the gems around the back of the choker, Diana decided to focus attention on the huge blue stone at the front.

This stylish midnight blue choker was worn for more than a decade, firstly for young pianists in Newport, Wales, in 1985 (above left). Diana rose eyebrows at a State banquet in 1986 by deciding to wear the choker as headband

The piece was backed only by Velcro, which, while not hugely secure, allowed the Princess to take it on and off easily.

She wore the choker for more than a decade, first at a competition for young pianists in Newport, Wales, in 1985 (above left) and for the last time at a concert given by acclaimed opera singer Luciano Pavarotti in 1995.

In 1986, she raised a few eyebrows by wearing the choker as a headband (above right), paired with a sapphire blue flowing gown and matching earrings, at a State banquet hosted by the Emperor of Japan.

Diana's love of mismatched earrings

Diana made no secret of expressing her personality through her jewellery — and this quirky pair of mismatched earrings is the perfect example.

Diana owned the earrings, comprising an unusual round-shaped gem attached to a pearl drop, in two stones: rubies and sapphires. She’s thought to have been given them on one of her many international tours in the late Eighties.

Diana decided to mix and matched her jewellery during an official visit to Seoul in 1992. The earrings comprised an unusual round-shaped gem attached to a pearl drop and were in two stones: rubies and sapphires

For this outing, during an official visit to Seoul, South Korea, in 1992, she decided to mix and match — wearing a ruby earring in her right ear and a sapphire in her left. Perhaps she had packed one of each colour by mistake. Or, more likely — judging by the glint in her eye — the playful Princess was making a fashion statement.

Her avant-garde earrings mirrored a look she sported at the America’s Cup Ball in London in 1986, when she donned one red glove and one black glove to match her flamenco-style dress, to the bemusement of onlookers.

One necklace - two clever bracelets

Diana loved to ring the changes with her jewellery, and from one unusual tassel necklace made these two bracelets.

The necklace, of alternating square-cut diamonds and sapphires, debuted at a banquet at the Dorchester Hotel in 1985.

Diana made these two bracelets from a tassel necklace containing alternating square-cut diamonds and sapphires. She debuted the bracelets at a concert at Versailles in 1994

With its asymmetric tassel drop, the Princess liked how the necklace draped across her décolletage and fitted around her neck like her trademark chokers.

Ingeniously, both the drop section and the choker part of the necklace could be detached and broken up into two sapphire-studded bracelets. The Princess wore them to a concert at Versailles in 1994, paired with a halterneck green and black dress by Catherine Walker.