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How Queen Mary Coveted Her Neighbor’s Goods
Queen Mary of the United Kingdom, the grandmother of the present queen, had a problem. She was fond of material goods. Her portraits display her covered head to toe in jewels, layering strands and strands of pearls, and wearing almost every Cullinan diamond at once.
The Queen’s penchant for collecting beautiful items was notorious. It was said that if the Queen was visiting your home, you should lock up your most prized possessions, or they may soon find a new owner. The Queen’s habit for collecting was so well known it was depicted in the first Downton Abbey movie. The movie depicts her more as a direct thief, pilfering insignificant items without a person’s knowledge. In reality, the Queen was more forthright. She would visit one of her subject’s homes and spy a bejeweled trinket box she liked. She would make comments about how much she desired it, and as the Queen, the owner would often be obliged to offer it up as a gift, or at least offer a sale at an incredible discount.
Unlike her depiction in the film, the Queen targeted valuable goods. Most of the items she acquired were put into the Royal Collections with the intention to expand the holdings of the Crown. She was interested in antiques and items of great artistic and historical value, such as works by Fabergé.
