The Most Famous Diamonds, Pt. 4

The BLUE HOPE
45.52 carats

More notorious than any other diamond, the Hope was once owned by Louis XIV and was officially designated the ‘blue diamond of the crown.' Stolen during the French Revolution, it turned up in London in 1830 and was bought by Henry Philip Hope after whom it is currently named. At that time it acquired its gruesome reputation for bad luck: all the Hope family died in poverty. A similar misfortune befell a later owner, Edward McLean. You can see the Blue Hope today at the Smithsonian in Washington.

This 45.52-carat dark-blue stone is undoubtedly one of the world's most famous diamonds, with a history heavily veiled by superstition. The legend unfolds in 1642 in Southwest India, where Jean-Baptiste Tavernier, a French adventurer and gem merchant was shown a rough blue diamond of 112.50 carats. The stone is supposed to have been "the Eye of Shiva" and to have been stolen. This is the reason for the "bad luck."

Several of its owners died tragically such as:

Louis XIV died from smallpox
Countess Du Barry was beheaded during the French Revolution
Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette were beheaded during the French Revolution
Baron Henry Hope and his descendants were beset with tragedy
Habib Bey drowned along with his whole family in a steamer collision
The last one, Evalyn Walsh McLean bought the diamond in 1910 from Pierre Cartier.
Despite all the glamour, luxury and power, Mrs. McLean's personal life had many tragic chapters.
Her son. Nine years old, was hit and killed by a car. Her husband was implicated in a scandal. They divorced in 1929. Mr. McLean died in an institution in 1946. Mrs. McLean's daughter, age 25, died from an overdose. Mrs. McLean died of pneumonia in 1947.

In 1949, Harry Winston purchased Mrs. McLean's estate of 74 pieces - including the Hope Diamond - for over one million dollars.

This famous diamond was the central attraction in the "Court of Jewels," an exhibition coordinated by Harry Winston, which toured the United States from 1949 to 1953.

In 1958, Harry Winston donated the Hope Diamond to the Smithsonian Institution. The Hope diamond has left the Smithsonian only four times since it was donated. In 1962 it was exhibited for a month at the Louvre in Paris, France, as part of an exhibit entitled Ten Centuries of French Jewelry. In 1965 the Hope diamond traveled to South Africa where it was exhibited at the Rand Easter Show in Johannesburg. In 1984 the diamond was lent to Harry Winston Inc., in New York, as part of the firm's 50th anniversary celebration. In 1996 the Hope diamond was again sent to Harry Winston Inc., in New York, this time for cleaning and some minor restoration work.

The KOH-I-NOOR
108.93 carats
First reported in 1304 as a diamond in the possession of the Rajah of Malwa, later, it fell into the hands of the Sultan Baber. For the next two centuries, it was one of the precious jewels of the Mogul Emperors. In 1739, Nadir Shah of Persia invaded Delhi. His systematic pillage of the city failed to uncover the huge stone, but then he was told by one of the harem women that the conquered Mogul emperor had hidden it inside his turban. Taking advantage of an Oriental custom, Nadir Shah invited his captive to a feast and suggested they exchange turbans. Retiring from the feast, he unrolled the turban and released the great gem. Seeing it he cried "Koh-i-Noor!" (Mountain of Light).

The gem went back to Persia with Nadir Shah, but he was assassinated in 1747 and the diamond was fought over by his successors. It was in the jewel chamber of Lahore, capital of Punjab, but when that state was annexed to British India in 1849, the East India Company took it as a partial indemnity for the Sikh Wars. The KOH-I-NOOR was presented to Queen Victoria in 1850 to mark the 250th anniversary of the founding of the East India Company.

When the large stone was displayed at the Crystal Palace Exposition, people were disappointed that the diamond did not show more fire. So, Victoria decided to have it re-cut, which reduced the 186-carat diamond to its present size. In 1911 a new crown was made for the coronation of Queen Mary with the KOH-I-NOOR as the center stone. In 1937, it was transferred to the crown of Queen Elizabeth (The Late Queen Mother of Elizabeth II) for her coronation. It is now on display with the British Crown Jewels in the Tower of London. With this Indian gem came a Hindu curse that said: "He who owns this diamond will own the world, but will also know all its misfortunes. Only God or a woman can wear it with impunity."

The CULLINAN
This was the largest lump of gem diamond crystal ever discovered. In the rough it weighed 3,106 carats, or about one and one half pounds. Because the rough had a cleavage face, many experts believe that the huge stone was only a piece of a much larger diamond that was broken up in the weathering process. The Transvaal Government bought the rough for $750,000 and presented it to King Edward VII on his birthday in 1907. In 1908 King Edward sent the stone to Amsterdam for cutting. The yield was nine major gems; the largest two were retained for the Crown Jewels.

The CULLINAN -- 530.2 carats.
This pear shape is the largest cut diamond in the world. Also called the GREAT STAR OF AFRICA, it is set in the Imperial Sceptre and is on permanent display in the Tower of London.

The CULLINAN II -- 317.4 carats.
This square cut brilliant is the second largest diamond in the world, cut from the same rough as the CULLINAN. Also called the LESSER STAR OF AFRICA, this diamond is in the Imperial State Crown, currently on display in the Tower of London.