We were shocked and ashamed upon learning there has never been a tiara from Liechtenstien featured on this blog. We’re also proud to anounce we’ve uncover a fairly simple remedy. Ta-da! Yes, it’s a Liechtenstein tiara and it’s called the Hapsburg Beam or Fringe but we’ll get to that.
It’s agreed that A.E. Köchert official k.u.k. Hofliferant [translation: official jeweller of the Imperial court] was commissioned to create a fringe tiara by Emperor Franz Josef I. That’s where the agreement ends, even over the term fringe. The style is also referred to as a “beam” or a “sun-ray.” One website even offers the term “solar” but we suspect it’s just a bad translation of sun-ray or vice versa. Facing a deluge of scattered facts, our biggest concern is which term we prefer. All are better than “fringe.” Ugh. That just reminds us of 80s bangs. That Australian hairspray in the purple bottle…Sun ray is more poetic; beam rolls off the tongue, has more comedic boing to it. Which do you prefer? No matter the moniker, this style of tiara was all the rage at the end of the 19th Century, almost every royal collection has at least one of these kokoshnik-inspired halos. It was the “must-have piece” for anyone who was anyone.
This particular setting is apparently Köchert’s signature style. Diamonds set in a gold and silver frame, the base is a no-nonsense row of diamonds. The spike styling is pretty straightforward fringe too, the good ol’ alternater. The wider, taller spires are pavé set diamonds while their shorter, slimmer neighbors are collet diamonds.
The first disagreement arises as to the year the Austrian Emperor ordered the Hapsburg Beam/Fringe/Sun-Ray from Köchert. Some sources claim it was ordered in 1870 for then-Infanta Maria Teresa, daughter of King Miguel of Portugal, in honor of her 1873 wedding to Archduke Karl-Ludwig. Karl-Ludwig was Emperor Franz Joseph I’s little brother, so it’s safe to say nobody stole lil’ Karl-Ludwig’s milk money on the playground. Disagree if you will, but we think a diamond-decked tiara is an indisputably tasteful welcome-to-the-family gift.
The second sources claim it was commissioned in 1890. That’s fine, but the reasoning behind it holds up like a piñata in a hurricane.
archducess maria teresa
a clearer photo of archduchess maria teresa
According to other tiara sites, the most “famous” donning of the Hapsburg Beam is attributed to Archduchess Maria Teresa at the wedding of her step-grandson, future Emperor Karl and Princess Zita of Bourbon-Parma. We’re guessing this is such a memorable donning of diamond headgear because it provides us with the only photograph of the Archduchess wearing the fringe in question.
In 1903, Maria Teresa’s daughter, Archduchess Elisabeth Amelie married Prince Alois of Liechtenstein but the tiara didn’t cross the border until later as the Princely family did not reside in Liechtenstein at the time, rather they took various residencies in Austro-Hungarian empire.
Elisabeth & Alois’ oldest son Franz Josef II became the sovereign prince of Liechtenstein in 1938. It’s uncertain whether the Hapsburg Beam was a wedding gift to Elisabeth or if she inherited it upon her mother’s death in 1944. Regardless of when it became Princess Elisabeth’s property, the Beam tiara made it to Liechtenstein, dubbed with it’s original house of provenance.
It was Prince Franz-Josef’s wife Georgina who brought the Beam to the public eye, wearing it for official portraits and tiara events.
In the 60s and 70s, a wedding tradition was almost established, the incoming brides donned the diamond sun-ray when they wed Princess Gina’s sons.
Countess Marie Algaë Kinsky of Wchinitz and Tettau wore it when she married the current Prince Hans-Adam in 1967. And then…
Isabelle de l’Arbre de Malander wore the Hapsburg Solar Tiara when she wed Prince Phillip in 1971.
Lately, the Hapsburg Beam Fringe has been seen atop Hereditary Princess Sophie’s head for those shiniest of occasions: Crown Princess Victoria’s 2010 nuptials in Sweden, the wedding ball in Monaco and the Queen Beatrix’s gala dinner just before the Dutch Investiture in 2013.
Princess Sophie & Prince Alois in Sweden in 2010 and the Dutch Investiture in 2013, respectively.
history buff, jewelry whore, chatterbox, mets fan
tiaras and trianon 
Great post–full of hilarious analogies that manage to be picturesque as well!
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and thank you for the promo on Twitter! This post took two months to publish! I clearly remember gathering all the facts & photos before I went back east to my parents’ for Christmas.
Not that I’m proud of my procrastination but it might explain the half-assed nature of the prose. : /
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Fabulous!!
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I side with the 1890 commissioning. Eliz (Sissie) was heartbroken over the suicide of her son and retired from public life. I think by that time she had had enough of the Franz J and the monarchy anyway. Even if the tiara had been commissioned for HER in 1870, I doubt she would have cared who wore it in 1890, as long as she didn’t have to perform the duties required. If it was commissioned for Maria T. in 1870, it certainly came in handy when she had to take over the monarchy duties. Either way, it is a lovely tiara I would enjoy wearing as I sit at my computer!
Thanks for the interesting post.
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Oh, the tiara was definitely made for Maria Teresa and not Sissi…Sissi was famous for adorning her long, chestnut hair with bejewelled clips but not really tiaras. Indeed, she did grow tired of being Empress…
I am currently pondering the good posture required to wear a tiara whilst typing. Might be better than pilates…wonder if my HMO would buy that [insert snort of derison here]
Thanks for commenting! I was actually just over on Map of Time enjoying the New Jersey Shark Attacks post again. Definitely one of my favorites!
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I could so bring tiaras back into fashion 😀 in crystal 😉
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So many of us share your resolve, Charlotte! Now I only wonder, why aren’t we wearing them to he quickie mart by now? Do all us tiara gals fear the others will back out at the last moment?
Time to kick off this “Tiaras-to-the-Street” initiative, sista! Thank you for your comment and support to the cause! 🙂
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Let’s do this, I have just one tiara and any excuse to pop it on I take it, not been to the shops in it yet, that might be fun 😄
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an official pedestrian tiara day? spread the word…
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I’m with you. Let’s take our tiaras to the streets and the grocery stores. YES. YES. Pick a day.
I’m really digging the “Beaming Fringe” model. Especially with Princess Sophie’s blue gown with the peek-a-boo shoulder action. Happy New Year! ~Theadora
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Does that mean YOU own a tiara too? Can I invite all of my tiara-owing crew to email/post a photo of theirs for me? We can have a tiara showcase.
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Yes, I do own a vintage tiara! It’s from New Orleans. I’ll take a photograph of it next week. It’s a beauty.I love the idea of a tiara showcase! ~Theadora
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BTW…do you remember when you told me about the Beaumarchais hotel and underlined the fact that Beaumarchais and M@ were not friends? Are you familiar with the opera “Ghosts of Versailles?” You might find the plot surprising…
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Weird plot! I’d like to see this opera. Bizarre! ~T.
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I’m seeing it tomorrow! Did M@ & B not get along at all in real life?
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