The legendary Koh-i-Nor diamond was lost for quite some time, after the handover from the Sikhs, to British rule, in 1849. It was only after repeated requests from Britain to Sir John Lawrence, Governor General of India, that the diamond was found again. Finally the gardener asked if they were looking for “The bit of glass in the old tin in the tool-shed?”

Sir Lawrence had been handed the fabled diamond as part of the spoils of war, without being aware of what he had been given. Perhaps it is just as well, as any male owner, or wearer of the diamond was said to possess the world, but also a world of the worst misfortune. Only a woman (or god) may wear or possess the diamond in safety.

The Koh-i-Nor diamond weighed around 793 carots when it was mined in India, some say 4000 years ago. The first cut took it to an undistinguished diamond weighing 186 carots. It was not until Queen Victoria ordered a further cut, that the brilliant 108.93 Koh-i-Nor we  know today, was revealed.

For 213 years the fabled stone was in the possession of Delhi Moguls. It was held by Tehran for 109 years and in Afghan’s possession for 66 years. All claim the stone back from Britain, who has held it for 160 years.
It is a diamond that has never been bought or sold, though it has changed hands many times and long been the eye of the storm. It has left a trial that involves war, greed, power, murder, mayhem, brutality and torture, not to mention deceit, double dealing and mountains of unhappiness. The curse-legend was so strong there was some talk of Queen Victoria returning the stone to India. Instead though, she placed it in a tiara, along with 2000 other diamonds.

In 1911 it was placed in the centre of a crown for Queen Mary to wear for the coronation ceremony.

Again in 1937 it was transferred to another coronation crown, for Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother. The only other time the crown was taken from behind its high-security armoured glass in the Tower of London, was in 2002, when it was placed on the top of the Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother’s coffin, as it proceeded from St James Palace to Westminster Abbey. There it remained on public view, as people filed past to pay their respects to the last Empress of India. One can only imagine the security that would have surrounded the crown jewel during this time.

Whether we believe in the curse of the Koh-i-Nor or not, it is doubtful that any man in the British realm, will have the courage to wear the fabled diamond.

Only now is there a possibility that the round Koh-i-Nor may be dwarfed by a new rough diamond found in a tiny nation of South Africa. A diamond that as yet remains unnamed and unvalued. A diamond that has the highest rated colour and clarity. Analysts, using high tech computers, estimate the diamond will cut into a modern round at about 150 carats.

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This ticket was posted on Thursday, December 11th, 2008 at 3:21 am and is filed under general. You can follow any responses to this ticket through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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