In few hours later, the next Miss Universe will going to wear the coveted crown. But before that, let us back in time to see the evolution of the Miss Universe crowns.
The Romanov Imperial Nuptial Crown (1952)
1. The first-ever Miss Universe crown was given to Armi Kuusela of Finland in 1952. It is a Romanoff crown and once belonged to the Russian czar. It contains 1,500 splendid diamonds, and weights 300 carats.
2. Kuusela was the first and only Miss Universe who had the privilege to wear it.
The Christiane Martel Crown (1953)
3. The second Miss Universe crown was made from metalic bronze.
4. The first and only Miss Universe to wear it was Christiane Martel Crown of France in 1953.
The Star of the Universe (1954-1960)
5. The “Star of the Universe” was given to the winners from 1954 to 1960.
6. The “Star of the Universe” consists of approximately 1,000 Oriental cultured and black pearls set in solid gold and platinum frame and weight 1.25 pounds.
7. The first woman who had worn the “Star of the Universe” was not (yet) a Miss Universe but a winner from Miss USA in 1954 instead.
8. Her name is Miriam Stevenson that eventually became the Miss Universe later.
9. Therefore, Stevenson had worn the “Star of the Universe” in the same year twice.
10. Stevenson was also the first American to wear the “Star of the Universe.”
11. Coincidentally, the last Miss Universe to wear the “Star of the Galaxy” was also from USA named Linda Bement in 1960.
The Tenth Anniversary Crown (1961-1962)
12. Miss Universe Organization decided to changed the design of their crown to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the beauty pageant.
13. The “The Tenth Anniversary Crown” was also the first rhinestone crown of the Miss Universe.
14. Only two Miss Universe titleholders had a chance to wear the “Tenth Anniversary Crown.”
15. The first Miss Universe that had worn the “Tenth Anniversary Crown” was Marlene Schmidt of Germany in 1961.
16. Then the last titleholder to wear it was Norma Nolan of Argentina in 1962.
The Miss Crown, the Lady Crown or the Queen Crown (1963-2001)
17. The “Miss Crown” is considered by many as “the most famous crown in Miss Universe’s history.”
18. The rhinestone crown was designed with the symbol of the Miss Universe Organization on top (a woman stands holding a scepter) which has become a part of the Miss Universe legend. It was used until 1969 until the redesigned version.
19. In 1970, the organization designed a new crown with a slightly different design (with still, logo of Miss Universe Organization in the center but the crown had extended wings) that was very similar to the previous one.
20. The first-ever Miss Universe who had worn the iconic “Miss Crown” was a delegate from Brazil named Iêda Maria Vargas in 1963.
21. Also, the first Asian who had worn the “Miss Crown” was Apasra Hongsakula of Thailand in 1965.
22. The last Miss Universe to wear the “Miss Crown’s” old design was Gloria Diaz of the Philippines 1969.
23. In addition, Gloria Diaz was the first one who had worn the redesigned version of the “Miss Crown,” before she passed it to Marisol Malaret of Puerto Rico in 1970.
24. Therefore, Marisol Marilet became the first official bearer of the redesigned “Miss Crown.”
25. Marilet was also the first Latina to wear the redesigned “Miss Crown.”
26. The last bearer of the redesigned “Miss Crown” was Margie Moran of the Philippines in 1973.
27. The first Miss Universe to wear the adjustable version of the redesigned “Miss Crown” was Amparo Muñoz of Spain in 1974.
28. Muñoz was also the first Latina to wear the adjustable version of the redesigned “Miss Crown.”
29. The last Miss Universe to wear the adjustable version of the redesigned “Miss Crown” was a Latina from Puerto Rico named Denise Quiñones in 2001.
30. In summary, the first and the last bearer of the “Miss Crown” were Latinas.
The Mikimoto Crown (2002-2007)
31. The next Miss Universe crown was designed by Mikimoto, the official sponsor of the pageant.
32. The crown has 500 diamonds of almost 30 carats, 120 South Sea and Akoya pearls, ranging in size from 3 to 18mm diameter and is valued at $250,000.
33. The “Mikimoto Crown” was designed specifically for the pageant on Mikimoto Pearl Island in Japan with the Mikimoto crown being first used for Miss Universe 2002.
34. The first Miss Universe who had technically worn the famous “Mikimoto Crown” was Oxana Fedorova of Russia.
35. However, she was also the first Miss Universe who officially surrendered the “Mikimoto Crown” for “failing to fulfill her duties.”
36. Therefore, Fedorova had worn the “Mikimoto Crown” for the shortest period in Miss Universe’s history—in a span of four months.
37. She was replaced by a Latina from Panama named Justine Pasek in September 2002.
38. Thus, Justine Pasek became the first Panamian Miss Universe, the first Latina to wear the “Mikimoto Crown,” and officially the first Miss Universe to wear it.
39. In addition, Pasek was also the first-ever Miss Universe who got crowned without wearing a gown.
The Vietnamese Crown or The Dayana Mendoza Crown
40. The 18-carat white and yellow gold “Vietnamese Crown” was designed by CAO Fine Jewelry specifically for the event.
41. The “Vietnamese Crown” consists of more than 1,000 precious stones, including 44 carats of diamonds.
42. The crown was only awarded as part of the pageant in 2008.
43. Miss Universe 2008 Dayana Mendoza is considered by many as “the luckiest Miss Universe ever” because she was the only Miss Universe who had worn the special crown in the pageant. The crown was made specially in Vietnam and called it “The Vietnamese Miss Universe Crown” or the “Dayana Mendoza Crown” for she was the first and only titleholder who had worn the said crown.
44. Before winning the Miss Universe, Mendoza was the first-ever Miss Venezuela who had worn the most expensive and the most precious Venezuelan crown in their country’s history.
45. Riyo Mori of Japan was officially the last Miss Universe who had worn the “Mikimoto Crown” in 2007.
46. However, due to public demand, Mendoza also had a chance to wear the “Mikimoto Crown” in Miss Universe 2009. Thus, she was technically the last titleholder to wear the crown diring the coronation night, until it was officially replaced by the Diamond Nexus Labs made “Peace Crown.”
47. In summary, the first and last titleholders to wear the “Mikimoto Crown” were both Latinas.
The Peace Crown (2009-2013)
48. 2009 marked the unveiling of the new crown. Diamond Nexus Labs was responsible for creation of the “Peace Crown.”
49. The crown is set with 1,371 gemstones, weighing a total of 416.09 carats. It also contains 544.31 grams of 14-carat and 18-carat white gold as well as platinum.
50. Before the actual “Peace Crown” was conceived, the Miss Universe Organization had its online voting system in 2009 for fans all over the globe. They were given three options which were: The “Unity” Crown, The “Hope” Crown and the “Peace” crown.
51. In 2009, Mendoza passed the Miss Universe title to her fellow Venezuelan Stefania Fernandez. Thus, becoming the first-ever and only Miss Universe to wear the newly designed “Peace Crown.”
52. In 2010, the crown was redesigned, yet similar to the original “Peace Crown.” It was the first-ever eco-friendly crown, with synthetic rubies attached to it.
53. The first Miss Universe who had worn it was a Latina from Mexico named Ximena Navarrete.
54. The first-ever black Miss Universe to wear the “Peace Crown” was Leila Lopes from Angola in 2011.
55. The last Miss Universe who wore the “Peace Crown” was Miss Universe 2013 Gabriela Isler from Venezuela… again!
56. In summary, the first and last wearer of the crown were Venezuelans and of course… Latinas.
The Manhattan Skyline Crown
57. Created by Diamonds International Corporation (DIC), the crown marks the beginning of a decade long relationship between DIC and the Miss Universe Organization.
58. The newly crafted Miss Universe crown weighs 411g and has an estimated value of $300,000 (£200,140). It contains 33 natural, translucent and colorless Bohemian crystals that are cut, polished and metalised on the rear side to enhance light reflection. Five large light blue topaz stones, each weighing 18.6 carats, adorn the crown. According to the makers, these stones symbolize strength and loyalty.
59. The crown also features 198 dark blue sapphire stones, symbolizing faith and wisdom, weighing a total of 29.7 carats. Encrusted with 311 small polished diamonds that weigh 10.37 carats, the crown has a base consisting of 18-carat white gold strip that is two cm tall, 0.5 mm thick and weighs 220g.
60. The “Manhattan Skyline Crown” succeeded the “Peace Crown” and the first Miss Universe who wore this was Paulina Vega of Colombia on 25 January 2015.
61. The December 20 event was considered by many as the “most epic Miss Universe coronation in its history” because two delegates have worn the crown at the same evening—Colombia and Philippines.
62. Whereas Philippine delegate Pia Wurtzbach was declared the real winner, becoming her the first-ever Asian to wear the “Manhattan Skyline Crown.”
63. Wurtzbach was also the first-ever Miss Universe to missed the traditional walk with the crown. Thanks to Steve Harvey!
64. The last pictorial of Wurtzbach as a Miss Universe marked the return of the “Mikimoto Crown.”
65. Making her the only Asian and Filipino in the history of Miss Universe to wear its two crowns.
Who will be crowned as the 65th Miss Universe this year? Are we going to have a back-to-back win? Will the successor make history just like the previous titleholders?
Watch the Miss Universe coronation on January 30 at 8am, as it will broadcast simultaneously via three biggest TV networks in the Philippines—ABS-CBN, GMA, and TV5!
