Since man has first discovered the beauty of diamonds, he has used these gems as a symbol of wealth and power. The largest and most rare stones have been noted throughout history. They have been owned by royalty, collectors and museum's. Below is an overview of some of the most famous diamonds of all time.
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The Blue Hope
The Hope Diamond is more notorious than any other diamond. It 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. While the diamond was in the possession of the Hope family it acquired its reputation for bad luck. The hope famly died in poverty and a similar fortune befell a later owner, Mr. Edward McLean. The hope diamond now resides in the Smithsonian Institution in Washington. |
| The Tiffany
The Tiffany diamond is the most well known yellow diamond. It was found in the De Beers mine in Kimberly in 1878 and weighed 287.42 carats. The following year it was bought by Charles Lewis Tiffany, the famous Fifth Avenue Jeweler, and was cut in Paris as a cushion-shaped brilliant with 90 facets, weighing 128.51 carats. |
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Koh-i-nor (Mountain of Light)
First mentioned in 1304, it weighed 186 carats and was an oval cut stone. It is believed to have once been set in the famous peacock throne of Shah Jehan as one of the peacock's eyes. Recut in the reign of Queen Victoria, it is among the British Crown Jewels and now weighs 108.93 carats. |
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The Star of Africa
The largest stone cut from the Cullinan and now among the British Crown Jewels. It weighs 530.20 carats and has 74 facets and is still the largest cut diamond in the world. |
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The Excelsior
The second largest stone ever found is the Excelsior, which was 995.2 carats in the rough. |
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The Dresden
The Dresden Green, which probably weighed over 100 carats in its rough form, is unique among world famous diamonds. It was originally probably an elongated unbroken stone since greenish diamonds rarely occur as cleavages. |
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The Idol's Eye
This is another famous diamond that was once set in the eye of an idol before it was stolen. It is a flattened pear shaped stone, weighing 70.20 carats, polished. |
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The Regent
Now on display in the Louvre in Paris, The Regent is a truly historic diamond discovered in 1701 by an Indian slave near Golconda, it weighed 410 carats in the rough. Once owned by William Pitt, the English Prime Minister, it was cut into a cushion shaped brilliant of 140.50 carats and, until it was sold to the Duke of Orleans, Regent of France when Louis XV was a boy in 1717, was called The Pitt. It was then renamed The Regent and set in the crown Louis XV wore at his coronation. After the French revolution, it was owned by Napoleon Bonaparte who set it in the hilt of his sword.
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The Centenary Diamond
Discovered at the Premier Mine, in July 1986. The 'Centenary' diamond weighed 599.10 carats in the rough. Together with a small select team, master-cutter Gabi Tolkowsky took almost three years to complete its transformation into the world's largest, most modern-cut, top-color, flawless diamond. Possessing 247 facets - 164 on the stone and 83 on its girdle - the aptly-named 'Centenary' diamond weighs 273.85 carats. |
