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The Great Mogul
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When found in the 17th Century, the Great Mogul Diamond
weighed 787.50 carats in the rough. After it was cut into a rose
cut, the diamond weighed only 280 carats. The stone was named after
its owner, Shah Jehan, the builder of the Taj Mahal, who fired and
fined the cutter $10,000 (the cutters entire fortune) for doing such
a poor job. It has now disappeared. |
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The Orloff
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The Orloff is thought to have weighed about 300 carats when
it was found. One tale told is that the Orloff was set as the eye
of God in the temple of Sri Rangen and was stolen by a French
soldier disguised as a Hindu. Then it came into the possession of
Nadir Shah, from whom it was also stolen. In 1767 an Armenian
merchant acquired it from a Persian and put it in a bank in Amsterdam.
Through a jeweler called Lazarev, Grigory Orlov (Orloff) bought it
for 400,000 rubles and presented it to Catherine the Great on her
name-day. It is now held in the Diamond Treasury of the USSR in
Moscow. |
The Centenary Diamond
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Discovered at the Premier Mine in July 1986, the Centenary
diamond weighed almost 600 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. The 'Centenary' diamond
was unveiled, appropriately, at the Tower of London in
May 1991. |
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The Regent
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A 410 carat diamond, found in 1701 by an Indian slave, was one of
the largest stones found in India. The diamond was sold to Governor
Thomas Pitt for a reported $100,000 and it was sent to England where
it was cut into a cushion shape weighing 140.50 carat. The diamond
was sold in 1717 for about $500,000 to the Duke of Orleans,
the Regent of France for whom it was named. Louis XV and Marie
Antoinette both wore the diamond, he wore it on his crown and she,
on her hat. After the French revolution, Napoleon had it mounted in
the hilt of his sword and when he was exiled, Marie Louis, his
second wife, gave it to her father, the Emperor of Austria who
returned it to the French Crown Jewels. When the Germans invaded
Paris in 1940, the diamond was sent out of the country however,
when the war ended it was returned and placed on display at
the Apollon Gallery. |
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