The Koh-I-Noor Diamond

 

"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." Once touted as the largest known diamond in the world, Kohinoor has always been the object of admiration, reason for pride and the answer for the connoisseurs of beauty. Kohinoor, which means "Mountain of Light" in Urdu, had a famed journey ever since its origin. This diamond was never bought nor sold and it has always altered its location from one dynasty to another and from one epoch to other.

The Kohinoor Diamond is one of the most famous diamonds in the world. The Kohinoor diamond was first mentioned in 1306 when it was taken from a Rajah of Malwa, whose family had held the diamond for centuries.The Kohinoor diamond belonged to various Indian and Persian rulers but it became part of the Crown Jewels of England at the time that Queen Victoria was proclaimed empress of India. The Kohinoor was re-cut at this time and now weighs 108.93 carats and is kept in the Tower of London.

There are still so many unresolved questions surrounding the precious stone.

Many legends say that the Koh-i-noor was mined in India, and at least 4,000 years old. It received a mention in the 1300s, when it was named in the Baburnama.One account states that Babur got his hands on the diamond in Gujarat; another says he got it in the Deccan.But when Babur came to Agra in May 1526, the ruler Vikramaditya most likely gave him the great diamond.

The final owner was Maharaja Duleep Singh. in the backdrop of the two Sikh Wars leading to the annexation of the Punjab by the British.The hoisting of British flag was on March 29th, 1849 Lahore where Punjab was formally proclaimed a part of the British Empire in India. One of the terms of the Treaty of Lahore was:- "The gem called the Koh-i-noor which was taken from Shah Shuja-ul-Mulk by Maharajah Ranjit Singh shall be surrendered by the Maharajah of Lahore to the Queen of England.

The Koh-i-Noor diamond was then given by Dalip Singh as Maharaja Ranjit Singh's successor (who had owned it) to Queen Victoria. Indian historians argue that Prince Dalip Singh was only a minor then, and could not have given the diamond away without coercion from his British advisors. The record also says that the confiscated diamond was presented to the Queen by Lord Dalhousie in 1850 through the young exiled Prince.

Prince Albert (Prince Consort) and Sebastian Garrard stated that the Koh-i-noor was badly cut, it is rose-not-brilliant-cut Prince Albert, and the technical direction of James Tennanthe diamond was cut from 186 1/16 carats (37.21 g) to its current 105.602 carats (21.61 g) to increase its brilliance.The re-cutting took 38 days and cost £8000 ($40,000). The final result was an oval brilliant diamond weighing 108.93 metric carats, which meant a loss of weight of just under 43 per cent.

After Queen Victoria's death it was set in Queen Alexandra's brand new diamond crown, with which she was crowned at the coronation of her husband, King Edward VII. Queen Alexandra was the first Queen Consort to use the diamond in her crown, followed by Queen Mary and then Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother. In 2002, the crown rested atop her coffin as she lay in state.

The earliest record of Koh-i-noor diamond gives us a fair idea that this exclusive piece of jewel actually weighed 240 karats. Hortensio Borgio, an Kohinoor diamond is safely housed in the Crown Jewels section of the Tower of London, which is a World Heritage Site and museum.

In the 20th century there was further controversy surrounding the Koh-I-Noor, namely the question of its rightful ownership. In 1947 the government of India asked for the return of the Koh-I-Noor: at the same time the Congress Ministry of Orissa claimed that the stone actually belonged to the god Jaganath, despite the opinion of Ranjit Singh's treasurer that it was property of the state. Another request followed in 1953, the year of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. But the really fight erupted in 1976 when the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, in a letter to the British Prime Minister, James Callaghan, submitted a formal request for the return of the diamond to Pakistan. This was refused but was accompanied by an assurance by Callaghan to Bhutto that there was no question that Britain would have handed it over to any other country.