Meghan Markle made a dazzling appearance in the Whistler ski resort in British Colombia yesterday, thanks to the reappearance of her £140,000 engagement ring.

The Duchess has not been seen publicly wearing the glittering band, comprising one huge Botswana diamond and two from Princess Diana‘s collection since May 2023.

Her ring was conspicuously absent at recent events, such as the premiere of Bob Marley biopic One Love in Kingston, Jamaica last month, and her attendance at the Variety’s Power of Women gala in November 2023.

According to People magazine the reason behind the ring’s long hiatus is that a setting came loose and it needed to be serviced.

Prince Harry proposed to Meghan in November 2017, with the ring comprising of a solid yellow gold band set with three diamonds, but Meghan has made several tweaks to the design since.

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Meghan Markle made a dazzling appearance in the Whistler ski resort in British Colombia yesterday, thanks to the reappearance of her £140,000 engagement ring

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The Duchess has not been seen publicly wearing the glittering band, comprising one huge Botswana diamond and two from Princess Diana ‘s collection since May 2023, but chose her visit to Whistler to reintroduce it

The Duchess of Sussex smiled as she held her hand up to her face during an afternoon in Whistler, BC – showing off her engagement ring as she did so

As she appeared on the slopes with Prince Harry (plus their cameraman) and larked about on skis, the Duchess’s dazzling diamond complemented a chic winter outfit.

She donned a quilted cream coat from Calvin Klein costing $295, layered on top of a $695 cashmere jumper from CO.

Ensuring her feet were toasty in the freezing Whistler temperatures, the Duchess wore a pair of furry boots from Sorel – quirkily named the Joan of Arctic design.

However, the Duchess’s stunning rock was the star of the outfit, and instead of covering up her hands with a pair of heavy-duty gloves, she proudly displayed the ring on her finger.

It is the first time mother-of-two Meghan has been spotted wearing the band for around nine months amid reports she was having it fixed.

She has instead been spotted wearing different, subtle yet chic rings on her finger – such as when she had lunch in California with her pals Cleo Wade and Kadi Lee. They are believed to be her wedding band and an eternity ring.

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Pictured, Meghan’s hands without the engagement ring while at the Invictus Games in September 2013

Harry waves to cheering fans as he and Meghan depart Whistler

During the Invictus Games in Germany last September, the Duchess was still without her engagement ring – but made up for its absence with a Shiffon and Co. pinky ring on her little finger.

In May, the Duchess was spotted hiking without her husband Prince Harry near their $14million Montecito mansion – hours after missing King Charles’ coronation.

Meghan was joined on the fresh-air outing by her friends, Markus Anderson and Heather Dorak, in California after celebrating her son Archie’s birthday.

However she was not wearing her glittering diamond ring for the occasion.

Later that month, the jewels were missing for a second time as she arrived at the Ms Foundation for Women’s 50th anniversary event at the Ziegfeld Ballroom in Manhattan.

During the event, Meghan was simply wearing her wedding band, which is in yellow gold to match Prince Harry’s, and an eternity ring, which she began wearing after her son Archie was born. It’s unknown why the ring was missing.

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Meghan Markle ditched her mysterious pinky ring made by celebrity jeweller Lorraine Schwartz, for a 1972 tennis pinky ring from Shiffon and Co today (pictured)

The tennis pinky ring, which is 18 carats and set in white-gold, retails for $2,800.

At the time of their engagement, the Duke spoke about creating Meghan’s ring with the help of jewellers Cleave and Company.

The custom design featured one diamond originally from Botswana (where the couple took a trip for their second date) and two smaller stones from Princess Diana’s collection.

At the time, he said: ‘The ring is obviously yellow gold because that’s [Meghan’s] favourite and the main stone itself I sourced from Botswana and the little diamonds either side are from my mother’s jewellery collection, to make sure that she’s with us on this crazy journey together.’

Meghan called it ‘incredible’, explaining: ‘Everything about Harry’s thoughtfulness and the inclusion of [Princess Diana’s stones] and obviously not being able to meet his mom, it’s so important to me to know that she’s a part of this with us.’

‘It’s incredibly special to be able to have this [ring], which sort of links where you come from and Botswana, which is important to us. It’s perfect.’

However the Duchess chose not to wear her engagement ring for a number of public engagements back in 2019 while pregnant with her son Archie.

When she appeared at Trooping the Colour that year, it emerged Meghan had altered the custom made engagement ring that Prince Harry designed for her.

At Trooping the Colour and at her Windsor Castle photo call with Prince Harry and newborn son Archie, the Duchess wore her three engagement diamonds set on a thin micro-pavé band.

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At the time of their engagement (pictured), the Duke spoke about creating Meghan’s ring with the help of jewellers Cleave and Company

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Prince Harry proposed to Meghan in November 2017 with a glittering ring comprising of a solid yellow gold band set with three diamonds (left). This was then changed to include a micro-pave band in 2019 (right)

Jewellery expert Arabel Lebrusan confirmed the ring had changed, and suggested it had been tweaked to make the original diamonds look bigger.

Arabel, owner the ethical jewellery brand Arabel Lebrusan, called the thinner band a popular trend, revealing: ‘Many celebrities do this, as the central stone looks bigger in comparison getting the wow factor.’

The jewellery expert pointed out the difference in the band, saying: ‘She now has little diamonds set down the sides of her engagement ring and the band also seems thinner than before.’

She also revealed that the glittering band only emphasised the Meghan’s diamonds, and added: ‘The diamond setting on the band looks like micro-set, this means there is very little metal in between the stones maximising the sparkle of the tiny diamonds.’

Arabel continued that she thought the new style suited the Duchess’ style ‘perfectly’, saying: ‘It does suit her style perfectly, and it fits her dainty fingers as well.’

Leora Moreno, owner of jewellery brand Leo With Love, said at the time the changes could have been changed to match Meghan’s eternity ring.

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The Duchess of Sussex speaks on stage at the Friends @ Home Event at the Station Airport during day three of the Invictus Games

She explained: ‘It looks like the eternity ring has a channel pavé setting. The engagement ring looks to have an even smaller pavé setting, but perfectly matches the eternity band.’

The jeweller went on to explain the change may have been complex, saying that it required ‘fine skill and craftsmanship to change the band to something more delicate like a pavé setting.’

She added that that the modern style would suit Meghan for ‘years to come’ and was ‘the perfect combination of eye-catching and dainty’.

In 2022’s Finding Freedom, Omid Scobie claimed it was the Duke who altered Meghan’s ring.

In the biography, jeweller-to-the-stars Lorraine Schwartz said: “‘He’s the loveliest person ever. So romantic, so thoughtful.'”

The authors continued: ‘(So much so that Harry also thought to have Lorraine resize and reset Meghan’s engagement ring with a new diamond band.)’