After a run of standout red carpet moments this year, Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden’s crowning fashion feat of 2025 arrives on Nobel night, courtesy of a reworn gown drawn from her mother, Her Majesty Queen Silvia’s, archive
Crown Princess Victoria has long understood the impact of a black and white palette, with her 2020 off-the-shoulder Nobel ball gown in the contrasting hues a prime example. This year, she circled back to a look with clear lineage.
The gown in question was first worn by Queen Silvia at the 1994 Nobel banquet. Designed by Jacques Zehnder, a frequent architect of the Queen’s evening wardrobe in the late twentieth century, the piece carries a Balenciaga-influenced silhouette and is cut from zibeline, a firm, faille-like weave no longer produced with a removable cascade of black flowers running along one side.
Seen again tonight, three decades later, it fits seamlessly into Crown Princess Victoria’s ongoing pattern of spotlighting archival royal fashion with contemporary relevance.
Photo: TT
Photo: TT
Photo: TT
In keeping with Nobel protocol, the Crown Princess paired the gown with the Sash and Star of the Order of the Seraphim, Sweden’s highest order of chivalry, together with His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf’s Royal Family Order worn on its pale blue ribbon.
Her jewellery choice was equally characteristic: The Sunray Tiara, strongly associated with the Crown Princess, appeared with its kokoshnik-inspired diamond fringe. Brought to Sweden in 1881, it has been worn by more members of the Swedish Royal Family than any other tiara. Tonight, it sat securely over Her Royal Highness' low bun, parted at the centre, and was paired with polished pearl drop earrings.
Photo: TT
Crown Princess Victoria’s 2025 Nobel look continues her measured approach to fashion at state events. It is not the first time she has revisited historic garments, and it clearly will not be the last. The reappearance of Queen Silvia’s 1994 gown shows how archival pieces can be reintroduced without nostalgia overwhelming the moment. Instead, the look positioned Victoria within a living fashion lineage that stretches through Sweden’s modern royal history and remains relevant on the Nobel stage.
By choosing Queen Silvia’s 1994 Zehnder gown, Crown Princess Victoria continued her habit of lifting the right garment from the royal archive at the right moment. Tonight, the look positioned the future queen of Sweden within a living fashion lineage that stretches through Sweden’s modern royal history and remains relevant on the Nobel – much as it did in 1994.