Kate Middleton continues to honor the late Queen Elizabeth II with her style choices.
The Princess of Wales wore the late monarch’s famous three-strand pearl necklace on Saturday at a lunchtime reception at Buckingham Palace, a favorite piece of the Queen that she wore almost daily.
She also wore Her Majesty’s Silver Jubilee diamond-and-pearl earrings — the same pair she wore for the past week — as well as a triple pearl bracelet that previously belonged to Princess Diana.
Middleton, 40, was joined by members of the royal family, including Prince William, King Charles and Queen Camilla, at the event, which hosted the Governors General of the Commonwealth countries.
The princess kept the rest of her look simple, wearing a black long-sleeved fit-and-flare dress from one of her favorite designers, Emilia Wickstead, along with black suede pumps.
Her choice of pearls makes sense for the occasion, as the gemstones are traditionally worn in times of mourning.
“The royal tradition of wearing pearls for mourning dates back to Queen Victoria, who was so overwhelmed with grief when Prince Albert died that she wore nothing but black for the rest of her life,” Maxwell Stone of British jeweler Steven Stone told the newspaper. to Vidak For Congress. Style.
“Occasionally, her black ensembles were broken with jewelry – although it was always black, colorless, or mother-of-pearl,” he continued, adding: “The pearls were believed to represent tears – establishing a tradition that continues to this day. continues today.”
The Princess of Wales has been spotted wearing several other sentimental pearl pieces from Queen Elizabeth’s jewelery collection ahead of the monarch’s funeral on Monday, including a diamond and pearl leaf brooch that she paired with Princess Diana’s Collingwood pearl earrings.