The Gist
Princess Anne and her husband, Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence, recently wrapped up a five-day royal visit to Asia.
The couple visited both South Korea and Thailand during their most recent travels.
While in Thailand, the Princess Royal’s “carefully considered” jewelry choices communicated “without saying a word,” Justin Daughters, managing director at Berganza, tells InStyle.
While Princess Anne toured Asia on behalf of the royal family, her jewelry choices reflected the style ethos of her mother, the late Queen Elizabeth.
The Princess Royal visited South Korea before heading off to Thailand as part of a five-day diplomatic visit focused on strengthening the U.K.’s ties to Asia. As she visited Bangkok, Anne wore a classic pearl necklace with matching pearl drop earrings and a statement brooch, wearing all black to pay her respects to the late Queen Sirkit and Princess Bajrakitiyabha of Thailand. Queen Sirkit died on October 24, 2025, and Princess Bajrakitiyabha died on June 11, 2026, just last month.
As seen in photos shared by the royal family on Instagram, the princess’s jewelry choices during her official visit to Thailand “are a beautifully judged example of how jewelry can communicate respect, heritage, and personal meaning without saying a word,” Justin Daughters, managing director at Berganza, tells InStyle.
Choosing pearls was a “carefully considered” decision, Daughters adds, noting that wearing pearls to pay one’s respects is “a traditional choice for formal and solemn occasions, long associated with elegance, dignity, and restraint.” Anne, he says, “echoes the timeless style associated with her late mother, Queen Elizabeth, while still maintaining her own distinctive approach to royal dressing.”
Princess Anne in Seoul, South Korea on July 14, 2026.Credit: Getty
The standout element of her look, Daughters says, is Anne’s brooch, set in a pearl and diamond spray-style design and positioned centrally against her all black look. This “creates a beautiful contrast and draws attention to the craftsmanship of the piece,” Daughters explains.
“Brooches hold a unique place in royal dressing because they are rarely chosen purely for decoration,” he adds. “Even when a specific piece’s history isn’t public knowledge, the tradition itself involves personal stories and family connections, with pieces frequently passed down through generations. This decides where and when to wear a particular brooch—a subtle but meaningful form of communication.”
Princess Anne at Royal Ascot on June 17, 2026.Credit: Getty
Of her overall ensemble, Daughters tells InStyle that “What makes this look so successful is its restraint. Nothing feels excessive or attention seeking—every piece has a purpose, working together with the dark, formal attire to strike exactly the right note for the occasion.”
Pearls have been the “go-to choice for royal periods of mourning” dating back to Queen Victoria’s era, according to Tatler. Queen Elizabeth in particular loved wearing pearl pieces, which the outlet guessed likely stemmed from King George VI’s sweet tradition of giving his two daughters a pair of pearls every year for their birthdays. By the time they turned 18, the publication reported, “both Elizabeth and Princess Margaret had enough for a single-strand necklace.”
For her wedding day to Prince Philip in 1947, King George VI gave Princess Elizabeth a three-strand pearl necklace, so beloved by the future queen that she was said to have had another almost identical three-strand pearl necklace made “to wear interchangeably to avoid exhausting the adored original,” Tatler reported.
Anne “inherited her mother’s love of pearls,” the outlet added—including a pair of Grima pearl earrings that the Princess Royal still wears today. They were a gift to her from her parents, and Anne wore them during her first foreign royal tour as an adult—to Australia in 1970—as well as on her 1992 wedding day to her husband, Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence, who accompanied Anne on her tour of Asia. Anne also wore the earrings while in South Korea this past week.
Princess Anne and South Korea’s president Lee Jae Myung on July 14, 2026.Credit: Getty
Anne—as she is prone to do—undertook numerous engagements while in Thailand, including meeting with the prime minister and with Their Majesties King Maha Vajiralongkorn and Queen Suthida at the royal residence in Bangkok.
Earlier, in South Korea, Anne came face-to-face with a robot at Korea University in Seoul. The device was seen “speedily running back and forth before stopping to wave at Anne,” Hello! reported, which prompted “a huge smile” from the Princess Royal.
While in South Korea, Anne also honored British soldiers who lost their lives in the Battle of Imjin River during the Korean War—the bloodiest for British forces since World War II, according to Hello!, claiming over 1,000 lives.
Anne also met with South Korea’s president Lee Jae Myung and chatted with members of the K-pop group NMIXX, who joined the Princess Royal for a reception at the Four Seasons Hotel in Seoul. For this occasion, Anne wore her rooster brooch, which Tatler described as “a fun piece of modern jewelry that has been in her collection since at least 1969.”
As Anne undertook her royal tour of Asia, “I think immense trust is placed in her by [King Charles],” body language expert Darren Stanton told Marie Claire. “The fact Anne and Tim Laurence have been chosen for this trip shows that.”
Princess Anne on May 6, 2026.Credit: Getty
“She is such a natural,” Stanton continued, adding that the people she met “appear to be overjoyed to be in her company.” A “confident and happy” Anne, he said, “also seems to be enjoying herself on the trip.”
“Anne is not the kind of person to fake these emotions if they aren’t genuine,” he said.
Read the original article on InStyle