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    From Queen Rania to Princess Rajwa: The story behind Jordan’s Arabic Scroll Tiara tradition

    Sondos Elgebaly

    The story begins 20 years ago, when His Majesty King Abdullah II commissioned the piece

    Who could have predicted that when His Majesty King Abdullah II commissioned the Arabic Scroll Tiara for Queen Rania in 2005, they would spark a royal tradition destined to captivate the world?

    It all began 20 years ago, when His Majesty King Abdullah II commissioned a striking tiara from FRED for his wife — a timeless and beautiful gesture of love.

    A one-of-a-kind creation, the Queen Rania tiara is set with around 1,300 diamonds, including delicate drop stones, and crowned with a magnificent 20-carat pear-shaped diamond. Adorned with intricate Arabic script reading “Greatness for Allah,” it has since become an iconic piece of Jordanian royal jewellery, which has only recently been seen more often.

    Her Majesty wore the enchanting Arabic Scroll Tiara at the State Banquet hosted by the Dutch Royal Family at Noordeinde Palace during the Jordanian State Visit to the Netherlands in 2006. She also wore it in a Vanity Fair photoshoot for the magazine’s September 2008 issue, before it was stored away for 15 years, until the wedding of her son, HRH Crown Prince Al Hussein, when it made a stunning return.

    Just a couple of months before His Highness the Crown Prince’s wedding, Their Majesties celebrated the wedding of their eldest daughter. Many expected to see HRH Princess Iman wearing one of her mother’s iconic tiaras for her special day. Instead, on 12 March, at Their Majesties’ residence, Beit Al-Urdun Palace, Princess Iman walked down the aisle in a bespoke Dior wedding gown, adorned with a stunning diamond tiara by Chaumet.

    It was revealed at the time that the tiara was a gift from her parents. Like her mother’s, the piece carried an Arabic inscription — this time with a more modern and delicate engraving that read “Imani Billah,” which translates to “My Faith in God.”

    Only a few months later, during Crown Prince Hussein’s wedding, the tradition took another beautiful turn. The bride, Princess Rajwa, was welcomed into the Hashemite royal family with her very own tiara, also adorned with an Arabic inscription. The Princess Rajwa wedding tiara carries the words  “Rajwa Min Allah”, meaning “Hope from God.” Much like Princess Iman’s, the tiara draws its inspiration from Queen Rania’s legendary Arabic Scroll Tiara.

    The inscription is more than mere decoration; it is a heartfelt gesture from Queen Rania, who, at Princess Rajwa’s henna party, lovingly described her as “the perfect answer to all my prayers for Al Hussein.”

    With two of the Queen’s children still unmarried, the world eagerly awaits the next chapter of this dazzling tradition, and the custom tiaras that will undoubtedly continue to celebrate love, heritage, and timeless elegance.

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