DIAMOND TIARA, 19TH CENTURY

Footnotes

Provenance:
Agnes Henrietta Anson née Acland (1851-1935) of Killerton, Devon;
Her daughter, Frances Gertrude Acland Temple née Anson (1890-1984) of Shugborough Hall, Staffordshire;
Her niece, Philippa Jennette Bosanquet (1914-2009) and thence by descent to the present owner

Agnes Henrietta Acland was the daughter of Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 11th Baronet (1809-1898) and Mary Mordaunt. In 1885, Agnes married Frederick Henry Anson, son of Reverend Frederick Anson (1811-1885) who served as Canon of St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle. Agnes and Frederic Anson had two daughters, Mary (1886-1975) and Frances (1890-1984). Frances married William Temple (1881-1944), Archbishop of Canterbury (1942-1944) in 1916.

This tiara of neo-classical inspiration is designed as ears of wheat, an attribute of the Roman goddess, Ceres, and therefore symbolic of prosperity and abundance. In Classical Antiquity, tiaras of laurel leaves, oak or other naturalistic foliage would also crown victors or be worn by women to demonstrate their prominent status in society. Emperor Napoleon I, who took every opportunity to liken his own leadership to that of the great Roman Emperors, often portrayed himself in his coronation robes and wearing a golden laurel wreath. Jacques-Louis David's 1804 painting of the French Emperor's coronation depicts both Empress Josephine as well as several ladies of the court wearing tiaras decorated with similar motifs, perfectly illustrating the proliferation of this fashion at the time.