At an event in Nigeria, the Duchess of Sussex wore a simple white dress and an equally simple diamond cross necklace. People Magazine exclusively reported, as the Sussexes were still in Nigeria, that Prince Harry had given the necklace to Meghan and it once belonged to his mother. It was the first time anyone saw the necklace on Meghan, and Diana was never photographed wearing it. But given People’s reporting, I feel like Harry or Meghan confirmed the provenance to Simon Perry, People’s royal editor, who was traveling with the Sussexes. Well, as you can imagine, the usual suspects are still super-salty that Meghan gets to wear some pieces from Diana’s private collection. The NY Post published this curious story:
While in Nigeria on her three-day faux-royal tour with Prince Harry last weekend, Markle, 42, displayed a delicate diamond cross that glinted in the sun as she attended a reception for military families in Abuja. Sources told Page Six that the never-before-seen necklace was gifted to Markle by her husband and was from his mother’s private collection.
“Diana remains a prominent force in Harry’s life and as a result, Meghan’s,” a source who knows the couple told us. “So much of his work is inspired by his mum, and it’s evident how much she still means to him. A gift to his wife that once belonged to his mother is incredibly meaningful and that isn’t lost on his wife.”
The appearance of the cross has set off intrigue, however, as to its origin. One London socialite who knows Markle mused to page Six, “Meghan likes to curate her jewelry to tell a certain story. I find it hard to believe that she’s been sitting on this necklace for 5 years.”
Additionally, Diana, who died aged 37 in August 1997, was never pictured wearing the piece of jewelry in public.
“No — I didn’t recognize this at all,” said one insider who worked closely with Diana. “In fact, Diana was ever the professional and she generally avoided wearing religious motifs of any kind because they have the potential to offend people, so she would never usually wear such a thing.”
Indeed, Diana was pictured wearing a cross in public just twice: once, her own, which she donated to charity and once with a cross she had borrowed from a friend.
I think people are trying to cast doubt on the origin of the necklace and they’re trying to say it’s not really Diana’s and the Sussexes are lying? Like… if Harry says a necklace belonged to Diana, I believe him. Now, I also doubt that Meghan would have had this necklace in her jewelry box for five years without ever being photographed in it. Which is why I suggested that Harry perhaps picked up this necklace while he was in London two weeks ago. He had free time, considering his dogsh-t father refused to see him – it would have been easy enough to have a brief meeting with the jeweler who keeps all of Diana’s private jewels. Harry possibly picked up even more pieces. Also: someone suggested that the Spencers might have given him the necklace, which I also think is a possibility.
Photos courtesy of Getty.