This year’s stunning Tusk Award trophy was sourced from Kate’s favourite African jewellery brand – Zimbabwean silversmith Patrick Mavros
This year’s stunning Tusk Award trophies were sourced from Kate’s favourite African jewellery brand – Zimbabwean silversmith Patrick Mavros.
The intricate awards were designed specifically for the three individual winners, and paid respects to their chosen fields of conservation.
They featured a giraffe, an elephant and trio of turtles mounted on a tall black wooden base adorned with silver tusks. Like most commissioned Mavros pieces they would have taken months to create in the studio and are likely to be worth around £8,000 each.
The brand also supplied elephant and turtle trophies for the awards.
The Duchess of Cambridge is a big fan of the luxury African brand, which has branches in Zimbabwe, Mauritius, Kenya and London, and owns a number of pieces which she has showcased over the years.
At her family’s private screening of Sir David Attenborough’s A Life on Our Planet in October she chose to wear a pair of Mavros Pangolin Haka earrings, £180, a thoughtful gesture to one of Sir David’s favourite creatures and the most trafficked mammal in the world.
Kate also owns a pair of Ndoro elephant earrings which she wore while attending a polo match in 2009. She wore a set of Mavros glittering drop earrings evening reception for the Tusk Trust and United for Wildlife in 2014, and owns crocodile stud earrings and a Zozo elephant pendant.
At the Cambridge family’s private screening of Sir David Attenborough’s A Life on Our Planet in October Kate chose to wear a pair of Mavros Pangolin Haka earrings, £180, a thoughtful gesture to one of Sir David’s favourite creatures and the most trafficked mammal in the world
In May (left) Kate donned the £900 Ocean Tides Milky Quartz earrings with 18ct gold in silver. The earrings are inspired by the Indian Ocean and feature polished stones dangling elegantly from carefully crafted sea urchins. Kate also has the earrings in solid 18ct gold which she wore for a visit to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King’s Lynn as part of the NHS birthday celebrations in July (right)
Kate, pictured in New York in 2014, also owns crocodile stud earrings from Patrick Mavros
Kate is believed to have discovered Patrick Mavros when she was designing jewellery at Jigsaw. She introduced Prince William and Prince Harry to the designer, and the Cambridges are believed to own a selection of the firm’s miniatures which they keep at their apartment in Kensington Palace.
The story of the family business began out of love when Patrick created a pair of earrings for his wife Catja, who wore them to the hair salon where her hairdresser saw them and requested a pair to be made for her.
Soon afterwards all the other ladies who frequented the salon were asking for similar earrings and the journey as Africa’s luxury house began.
The Mavros business has been an international success story and clients include J.K. Rowling, The King of Spain and Denzel Washington.
Patrick’s sons are carrying on the legacy of the business; Alexander, a known friend of the royals, runs their boutiques, and Forbes and Patrick Jnr head up the design and craftsmanship from the island of Mauritius and their home in Zimbabwe.
Patrick Mavros’ business has been so successful that three of his four sons have followed him into the profession. Pictured: the family
Patrick Mavros also supplied elephant (left) and turtle (right) trophies for the awards