Queen Máxima of the Netherlands is a master of style. She loves hats, color, and basically anything fashion. So it should be no surprise that she can pull off any kind of jewelry, including opals, and she tends to wear the fragile stone more than most European royals. Back in June 2023 on the final day of a three-day royal state visit to Belgium with her husband, King Willem-Alexander, the Queen wore an eye-catching red cape dress with a matching wide-brimmed hat.
While her diamond and ruby earrings certainly sparkled, it was her massive opal brooch in the shape of a flower and pinned to her cape that couldn’t be missed. According to The Court Jeweller, the brooch is a Dutch royal family heirloom that once belonged to the King’s great-great-grandmother, Queen Emma, and hadn’t been seen in public for more than a decade prior to this engagement in Antwerp.