Thursday, August 12, 2010

THE DARYA -i- NUR DIAMOND


The Darya-i-Nur

Considered to be the most celebrated diamond in the Iranian Crown Jewels and one of the oldest known to man, the 186-carat Darya-i-Nur is a crudely fashioned stone measuring 41.40 × 29.50 × 12.15 mm. The name means Sea of Light, River of Light, or Ocean of Light. It is a table or 'taviz' cut diamond.
Both the Darya-i-Nur and the historic
Koh-i-Noor are said to have been in the possession of the first Mogul emperor of India, from whom they descended to Mohammed Shah. When the latter was defeated by Persia's Nadir Shah during the sack of Delhi in 1739, he surrended all his chief valuables, including the diamonds and the well-known Peacock Throne.
After Nadir's assassination in 1741, he Darya-i-Nur was inherited by his grandson, Shah Rokh. Later, it descended in succession to Mirza-Alam Khan Khozeime and thence to Mohammed Hassan Khan Qajar. Finally, it came into the possession of Lotf-Ali Khan Zand, who was defeated by Aga Mohammed Khan Khan Qajar.
In 1797, Aga Mohammed was succeeded by his grandson, Fath Ali Shah, who was both a collector and connosseur of gems and whose name is engraved on one side of the great diamond.

No comments: