Princess Soraya's Engagement Ring

Shah Reza Pahlavi and Princess Soraya on their wedding day in 1951. Princess Soraya's engagement ring is listed as one of the most famous vintage engagement rings of modern history. It features a Harry Winston diamond weighing a massive 22.37 carats, with two tapering baguette diamonds set horizontally onto the platinum band. The step-cut (either emerald- or table-cut) stone is held in place by four fancy platinum prongs. The story of this white diamond betrothal gift reads eerily like the tragic love story of Napoleon and Josephine. Like many royals before them, the last Shah of Iran and his lovely bride made the hard choice to exchange their personal happiness for civic duty in service to their country. According to the history on the Bakhtiari family's website, which tells the detailed story of the life of Soraya Esfandiary-Bakhtiari, "The two were drawn to one another instantly and sparks began to fly." The Washington Post reported that Soraya told a German interviewer that "it was love at first sight" {cited}.

Soraya is Considered

Soraya Esfandiary-Bakhtiari was born into a Persian noble family in 1932. At the age of 17, she was presented to the Shah of Iran and invited to become his Queen. Forough Zafar Bakhtiari, a close friend of Shah Pahlavi's mother, had been asked to scout the eligible women in her family {2}. Forough's niece told her about Soraya, who was studying in London at the time. Based on Forough's report, the Queen Mother requested photographs and asked her daughter, Princess Shams, to meet with Soraya in London {2}. After meeting with the young Persian noblewoman, Princess Shams sent word to her mother: "...I don't need to see any other girl. The woman is born to be a Queen. She is beautiful, very well educated, and has excellent mannerism" {2}.

Soraya, Born to Be Queen

According to Van Cleef & Arpels, Princess Soraya was among the most photographed women in the 1950s. A survey of photographs from the time demonstrate the power of her exotic beauty. According to Nasser Amini, one of the Shah's diplomats, the princess "had the most captivating eyes in the world....They had such a rare intensity, deep green like the rarest of emeralds" {cited}. She was hailed by Life Magazine as "a remarkable woman, charming and unpretentious" {May 12, 1958}. Clearly, it was her charm that won over her future sister-in-law, and it was her beauty that captured the heart of a king.

Shah Pahlavi Asks for Her Hand

The Queen Mother showed her son the photograph, and he immediately requested a meeting in person. Princess Shams, whom Soraya had just met, accompanied Soraya to Tehran. The night of their first meeting, at two in the morning, Shah Pahlavi called Soraya's father, Khalil Khan, and asked for her hand in marriage {2}.  At some point during their official courtship, he presented Soraya's engagement ring to her. Their courtship was bliss, a romance for the ages. The royal family announced their engagement formally on October 11, 1950 {2}, and a date of December 26, 1950, was set for their wedding. Unfortunately, a serious bout of typhoid fever and grippe assailed Soraya just before her wedding {10}. According to Van Cleef & Arpels, her convalescence, which lasted several months, was punctuated daily by elaborate jeweled gifts from her fiance, Shah Reza. One of these gifts, a delicate yellow gold, ruby, diamond, and blue sapphire brooch, features a trio of lovebirds perched on a branch. A photo of the exquisite piece can be seen on VC&A's website.

A Legendary Gown

As Soraya grew stronger, a new wedding date was set for February 12, 1951. Life Magazine reported, in their issue dated February 26, 1951, that "a coverlet of snow on the earth" heralded "a happy marriage." The Shah was seen chain smoking outside the Marble Palace as his bride's arrival was announced by the roar of two jets. Against the backdrop of nearly two tons of orchids, tulips, and carnations flown in from the Netherlands {8}, Soraya proved a vision in her Dior gown of silver lame bedecked with 20,000 marabou stork feathers {8} and 6,000 diamonds {2}. The writer at The Royal Order of Sartorial Splendor describes the dress as "the most couture couture gown ever seen at a royal wedding," a work of art that was "utterly, unabashedly over the top." According to British Pathe, the dress weighed 40 pounds, though the Sartorial writer reports it weighed 44 pounds. Either way, combined with the full-length white mink coat the Shah draped over her shoulders at one point, the weight of this ensemble was altogether too much for the Princess to bear after her prolonged illness. Concern for his bride led the Shah to consult with Dr. Ayadi. A lady-in-waiting was soon asked to cut off several yards of the Princess's petticoats with a pair of scissors to relieve her of her burden {2}.

A Fairy Tale Wedding

Their ceremony took place in the Mirror Hall in Golestan Palace in Tehran, followed by a banquet and reception. The British news reel reports that the scene that night in the "fabulous, pink-marbled Golestan Palace" was one of "glittering brilliance" {cited}. Against the backdrop of Mughal splendor, men and women of nobility from around the world came together to celebrate the budding romance in a grand show of flowers, couture, gold, and gemstones. What "started with a snapshot," says the British newscaster, came "to a fairy tale climax." by Angela Magnotti Andrews, EraGem Staff Writer

References

1. Afkhami, Gholam Reza. The Life and Times of the Shah. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2008.
2. Bakhtiari Family. "Princess Soraya Esfandiari Bakhtiari." Accessed January 2, 2015. http://www.bakhtiarifamily.com/soraya.php.
3. "Beautiful Soraya in New York," Life Magazine, May 5, 1958, p. 42.
4. British Pathe. "Special--Tehran--The Shah's Wedding," Video dated 1951. http://www.britishpathe.com/video/special-teheran-the-shahs-wedding.
5. "Iran's Shah to Wed in Splendor Today," The New York Times, February 12, 1951, p. 6.
6. Kadivar, Cyrus. "Soraya: Fragments of Life," The Iranian, June 25, 2002. http://iranian.com/CyrusKadivar/2002/June/Soraya/index.html.
7. "Late Princess Soraya's Personal Effects Sell for $6 Million," Hello Magazine, June 3, 2002. http://us.hellomagazine.com/royalty/2002/06/03/soraya/.
8. "Shah of Iran Wed in Palatial Rites," The New York Times, February 13, 1951, p. 14.
9. "Soraya in Search of Solace," Life Magazine, May 12, 1958, pp. 117-122.
10. "The Shah Takes a Bride," Life Magazine, February 26, 1951, pp. 30-32.
11. Van Cleef & Arpels. "H.I.H. Princess Soraya." Accessed January 5, 2015. http://www.vancleefarpels.com/us/en/article/2976/hih-princess-soraya.
12. "Wedding Wednesday: Queen Soraya's Gown," Sartorial Splendor blog, October 26, 2011. http://orderofsplendor.blogspot.com/2011/10/wedding-wednesday-queen-sorayas-gown.html.
13. Zoech, Irene. "Fortune of Shah's former wife goes to German state," The Telegraph, April 6, 2003. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/1426783/Fortune-of-Shahs-former-wife-goes-to-German-state.html.