Every time I think about Mokrin of Scots and all her things and all her stuff, just so heartbreaking,

because you think, gosh, you know, wouldn't it be amazing to have some of it in a museum now?

We could all just look at it and think such an insight into the woman and her taste and what she loved

and what kind of things she chose for herself, because there's one thing looking at inherited jewels,

but also the things that a woman would buy and commission for herself.

I mean, oh, I'd love to see it.

But sadly, all gone.

Welcome to If Jewels Could Talk.

I'm Carol Walton, the voice of jewellery, an author, broadcaster,

and the woman who initiated the role of

Jewelry editor at magazines like Tattler and British Vogue.

This is a podcast for everyone.

For people who do like jewelry, for people who don't realise they like jewellery, and anyone

intrigued by fascinating facts, new ideas, and forgotten histories. So please join me as I tell

sparkly tales meeting all sorts of people delving into four centuries of jewelry culture

and investigate what's happening now. I'm delighted to be here with Professor Kate Williams, the Oxford-trained historian,

who's Professor of Modern History at Reading University, and who combines scholarly detail

with page-turning narrative in her books documenting numerous key female figures in history.

Today we're going to be discussing the life of Mary Queen of Scots,

as depicted in Kate's best-selling book, Rival Queens,

about Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots.

Mary is the archetypal tragic heroine who faced stacked odds from the moment of her birth.

...