One of the oldest items of adornment in the world is the tiara. The tiara has played a number of important roles in different social groups. Possibly the most famous of all tiaras is that worn by the pope. The tiara that is worn by the pope is called the Papal tiara and it refers to what is essentially a high cap that is worn at ceremonial occasions. The papal tiara tends to be associated with supreme authority and it is adorned with an image of the globe and a cross that is indicative of the Roman Catholic Church.

This tiara has not been seen in public for a number of years. The last time it was seen in public it was worn by Pope Paul the fourth. It has not been worn since the Second Vatican council. This was a series of sessions that took place between leading figures in the Roman Catholic Church where many of the theological issues that the church faced were discussed.

The tiara has however not been worn since and as a result the tiara has almost left the public conscience. The image of the tiara has even been removed from the coat of arms of the current Pope; Pope Benedict XVI. The current coat of arms includes an image of the more traditional headgear worn by bishops and abbots; a mitre.

The reason for this change is that the Pope is concerned that the tiara represents a role as a king or leader and the pope wanted to have a simpler image that instead referred to spiritual authority. Despite not being the most popular form of headwear for the Pope the tiara is still a very popular form of headwear in many other situations.

There is a long history in which tiaras have been used. Early tiaras were in the form of leather which was wrapped around the head and adorned with various different items such as bones, animal horns and feathers. These tiaras are generally a symbol of authority and represent the leader of the group. This level of authority is associated with that of a crown and the tiara has in recent rears become synonymous with female dignitaries.

The tiara these days is made out of metal and is almost a full circle of metal however the circle is not complete. The two ends of the curved metal nearly meet at the end and this section of the tiara is placed at the rear of the head. The front end of the tiara is typically covered in jewels and is raised above the simple band. These modern tiaras are also commonly worn as part of the bride's wedding clothing.

One of the most famous fictional characters to wear a tiara is Wonder Woman. The comic book superhero wore a tiara when she was performing her role as a superhero and as a result the tiara can be seen as something very feminine and powerful. This was the type of character that the comic book creators had wanted. Someone that was both powerful and beautiful and as a result the tiara was chosen as the distinctive item of her costume.