Leisure hours among the gems

by Augustus C. Hamlin

THE DIAMOND.

Le diamant: c’est l’art des choses idéales
Et ces rayons d’argent, d’or, de pourpre, et d’azur
Ne cessent de lancer les deux lueurs égales
De pensers les plus beaux, de l’amour le plus pur.
Il porte du génie et transmet les empruntes,
Oui, de ce qui survit aux nations éteintes,
C’est lui le plus brillant trésor et le plus dur.

Alfred de Vigny.

LEISURE HOURS AMONG THE GEMS.

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CHAPTER I.
THE DIAMOND.

The advice of Rabelais quoted on our titlepage indicates sound judgment, if not a glimmer of prophetic feeling; but we doubt very much whether the quaint philosopher had any conception of its extent and scope when he gave it. Could the queer, sceptical old fellow return to earth again after his long quiet sleep of almost four centuries, how astonished would he appear at the revelations of the students who have followed his suggestion during the last century even! And yet in reality how little has been revealed to the limited vision of man, compared with the vast resources of nature still unexplored and shrouded in mystery. In enumerating the precious stones among the works of nature worthy of the contemplation and earnest study of man, Rabelais not only exhibited a prophetic discernment, but he disclosed the fancies which invested these mineral objects in his day and in earlier times, and which have in a measure descended to the present era, and still exert some influence.

The study of the gems is one of the most interesting of all the objects of natural history; and although the field of research appears somewhat limited at first glance, the scene expands as we advance, and we are soon lost in the beauty and mystery of the subject, which as yet no man has been fully able to comprehend and explain. It is commonly understood that this study is simply a matter of commerce, or belonging to the province of the jeweller or the mineralogist. But the subject is really of far greater importance. Several of the ablest of our philosophers have been deeply interested in this pursuit, and have revealed to us startling phenomena, many of which have been turned greatly to the aid of science and the comfort of mankind. After so many years of study and research, the field of observation and discovery is by no means exhausted.

We may take another view of the subject solely with the artistic eye, and find much for enjoyment and contemplation. In the art of ancient times the precious stones played an important part, and by means of the engraved gems we are enabled to form an idea of the wonderful skill of the artists of those periods. By means of these engraved stones the portraits of many of the illustrious characters of antiquity have been preserved, and also representations of some of the masterpieces of sculpture, which have since been destroyed by time or the hand of barbarism. If the reader, exercising a little credulity and patience, will kindly follow me through the observations of many years here condensed and recorded, he may in a slight degree partake of some of the enthusiasm and interest of the author.

But, before we proceed very far on the pleasant and seductive journey, let us understand each other, and, above all, allow the author to confess that his knowledge of the subject is decidedly imperfect, and perhaps somewhat visionary at times.

We will consider first the diamond, not because we regard it the foremost in interest among minerals, but because it is to-day reckoned commercially, as it was in the time of the Latin philosopher, Pliny, nearly two thousand years ago, “Maximum in rebus humanis,”—“The most costly of human possessions.” But we must, however, slightly modify the remark, and now apply it to the rare colored varieties of the gem, since commerce and refined taste rank the red sapphire far above the colorless diamond in value, and sometimes even the emerald and rare blue sapphires exceed it in price. It is interesting, and at times amusing, to read the views of the ancient gem-writers, and even those of mediæval times, relating to this remarkable mineral, and compare them with the accepted opinions of the present day. The ancients were completely ignorant of the nature of the stone, and called it “adamas,” or the invincible, from the mistaken idea that it could resist all external violence, and was also perfectly indestructible. Modern science, however, has disclosed the fact that the gem is not only quite delicate in its structure, but that it is also utterly perishable in its nature. The revelations of chemistry have clearly demonstrated that the glittering stone, known as the diamond, is simply crystallized carbon, and one of the allotropic forms of that protean element which, by the aid of some mysterious agency, can deposit its substance in the shape of a sooty blackness, as in the coal, or in the transparent crystal of diamond, which may be regarded as the very emblem of light. Furthermore, the gem is not only the concentrated embodiment of human valuation, but it is also the standard of hardness among all mineral substances; and yet, strange to say, plumbago, which apparently is of the same composition, is exactly the reverse, and quite as soft as talc.

Here, then, we may behold one of the strangest antitheses to be seen in the whole mineral kingdom, for we have a simple and singular mineral composed of the meanest of elements, yet whose different forms illustrate the extremes of hardness, and may also be considered to represent the antipodes of material treasures.

The crystallized and transparent variety, when it occurs in its greatest perfection, and especially with the rare colors of red, blue, and green, forms indeed the most beautiful of all the decorative stones yet known to man. For it not only far exceeds all others in degree of hardness, but it also surpasses them in its extraordinary brilliancy and the wonderful display of the prismatic colors, especially by artificial light, which charm it alone possesses of all the gems and precious stones.

Although it is widely distributed over the world, and has been known to man for many centuries, yet its distribution, its deposition, its geological age, are not only puzzling themes to the mineralogist, but they are yet subjects of startling interest to the philosopher.

The origin of the stone has long been a subject of inquiry among experimentalists, and it has received more attention from them than all the other gems reckoned together. As for our humble opinion, after long consideration of this multitude of hypotheses, we are inclined to assert the diamond to be the product of decomposition of vegetable material, and derived from one of the numerous chemical compounds of carbon and hydrogen. We find some of these forms generated wherever vegetable matter is decomposed under water, and in the gem strata of the diamond placers we may observe abundant evidence of material for metamorphosis. If we admit the origin of the gem to be from vegetable matter, or derived from any transformations of organic débris, we then reduce the history of the diamond to a simple problem; for it is quite easy to explain, or rather imagine, the required chemical change under the action of electricity or telluric magnetism, and all along the true gem formations the phenomena of the earth’s vitality in this respect are remarkable.

Carbon is commonly mentioned as the meanest of elements, yet, when we come to consider its bearing in the mineral kingdom, and its vast relations in human industry, or its effect in the progress of civilization, it deserves a higher rank, or certainly a more generous classification among the constituents of the earth. For it not only occurs in various states in the air, the sea, and the more solid portions of the earth, but we find it an essential ingredient in the structure of all animal and vegetable life. It is really one of the most interesting and important of the elementary bodies, and may present itself in a variety of allotropic forms of remarkable and striking character. To its combination in the mineral substance known as coal the world owes its greatest blessing, save the golden grains Triptolemus gave to mankind. From its purest and crystallized form art derives its richest and most dazzling object of ornamentation. Without it the globe would soon become desolate and all organic life cease to exist.

In contemplating the transcendent beauties of the purest of its states, the observer can hardly realize that between the sparkling diamond and the black, lustreless mineral known as graphite, there is only the difference in the arrangement of their invisible atoms. Yet, so far as we know at the present day, the two objects are apparently of the same composition, differing only in their system of crystallization. The first we recognize as the perfection of natural beauty, the concentration of brilliancy, and the standard of limpidity, while the other is directly the opposite in its effects and relations. The diamond, when exposed to sufficient heat, parts with its wonderful beauty and disappears, leaving only a minute trace of seemingly carbonized matter.

It often perplexes the student in chemistry to explain the varied forms and the different properties of substances having apparently the same composition. It is not especially in the mineral kingdom that he meets with these strange anomalies, but his mystery becomes intensified when attempting to solve the problems of organic life. For instance, in seeking to explain the odors of vegetable substances, he finds that ten parts of carbon and sixteen of hydrogen appear to form the sole constituents of many perfumes,—like the oil of lemons, lavender, turpentine, etc. And yet, with the elements known, he not only finds himself unable to combine them artificially so as to produce the perfumes, or explain satisfactorily why bodies possessing the same constituent parts exhale odors so different.

Among all these investigations and reasonings the question comes forcibly to the mind, why was the gem created, and has the day gone by when the conditions required for its formation no longer exist? With due respect to the phenomena connected with the crystallization and deposition of metals and minerals at the present time, we cannot answer this inquiry hastily.

We may affirm, perhaps, that nature possesses the power to form the diamond to-day, but are the conditions requisite for its evolution present and complete? We will not now attempt to discuss the arguments bearing upon this interesting theme; but we will, however, modestly state that it is our belief that the diamond is the last gem placed upon the earth, and that the period of its deposition was subsequent to the introduction of some of the higher forms of animal life on the globe, and, possibly, since the appearance even of man.

CHAPTER II.
ANTIQUITY OF THE DIAMOND AS A GEM.

It is quite certain that the diamond is not one of the earliest gems known to man, and the facts of the stone not having been found among the ruins of Nineveh or Bassora, the Etruscan sepulchres, or the jewels of the ancient tombs of the Phœnicians of the island of Cyprus, recently explored by Di Cesnola, afford strong presumptive evidence that its discovery dates within historic times. As the gem in its natural state is not often finely crystallized with smooth planes and perfect transparency, like the limpid crystals of quartz, it was probably long overlooked by man, and its adoption in the decorative arts preceded by the bright-colored and softer stones. The rough crystals are not attractive when placed in comparison with many other gems, and their degree of hardness, coupled with their rarity, probably gave them their value among the ancients. We are inclined to think that their use was governed by the fancy of the rich and powerful nobles, and that the emerald and the blue and red stones took precedence in the selection of gems until the art of polishing was discovered.

In the time of Pliny the stone was acquired only by the richest of kings; and in the days of Alexander Severus, in the third century, it was remarkable for its price, while the emerald was estimated for its beauty. Lollia, at the Banquet of Caligula, glittering with the spoils of Asia Minor, of fabulous value, did not wear the diamond, so far as we can ascertain.

There is evidence to lead to the presumption that the gem was regarded in the early periods more of a curiosity possessing talismanic powers than as an ornamental stone. The famous crown of Chosroes, made in the latter part of the sixth century, and brought to light by Shah Abbas after a thousand years of concealment in an obscure fortress among the mountains of Lauristan, does not contain diamonds among its ornaments, but is incrusted with pearls and rubies.

The absence of the stone in this royal tiara, constructed at this early period of time, is certainly significant, and indicates that it was not high in estimation, or that the art of polishing in a definite manner, so as to reveal the hidden splendors of the gem, had not then been discovered.

The early practice of polishing the natural faces of the crystal did not reward the patient lapidary by a corresponding increase of beauty. Hence we can explain the setting of rough diamonds in mediæval times long after the process of polishing had been discovered and put in practice by the Orientals.

The crown of the Khan of the Tatars, captured on the Oxus by the Persians in the fifth century, is described as being ornamented with several thousand pearls, but there is no allusion to any stones resembling diamonds; yet the Tatars had undoubted access to the commercial marts of India.

The cup of Chosroes I., of the seventh monarchy of Persia, and which is still extant, is composed of small disks of colored glass united by a gold setting, and having at the bottom a crystal engraved with the figure of the monarch. This royal relic is destitute of diamonds. When the treasures of the Persian palace of Dastagherd were captured in the seventh century, no mention of the diamond was made in the enumeration of the articles. Among them were the famous throne of gold called “Takdis,” supported on feet composed of rubies; also the crown formed of a thousand huge pearls. If diamonds were abundant at this period, why do we not find them among the decorations of the royal jewels? Macondi, however, says that the Sassanian king had nine seals of office, the first of which was a diamond with a ruby centre, bearing the portrait, name, and titles of the monarch.

The sacred standard of Persia, the famous “durn-foh-Kawani,” or leathern apron of the blacksmith Kawak, which was eighteen feet long by twelve feet broad, was richly adorned with silk and the finest gems when it was captured by the Arabs in 636, at the great battle of Cadesia. Its value was then estimated at $150,000, but the diamond is not mentioned among its ornaments, and if it had been abundant we might expect to see it prominently displayed among the decorations. However, we must admit that many of these historical descriptions are very incorrect, and often partake largely of the nature of the fabulous. And so, in the description of the capture of Ctesiphon by the Arabs in the seventh century, the historian states that vast quantities of gems and precious stones and treasures of wondrous beauty, of more than one hundred millions of dollars in value were obtained. Among the descriptions of the articles comprised in this immense booty we fail to find any allusion to the diamond, and yet we know that the gem was not unknown to Persians at that time.

To give the reader an idea of the magnificent tastes of the Persian nobles at that period, we will mention some of the articles captured at this time by the freebooters of the desert.

A wonderful carpet woven of white brocade is described as being one of the marvels of the world. It was four hundred and fifty feet long by ninety feet in breadth, and exhibited a border worked in with precious stones of various hues to represent a garden of all kinds of beautiful flowers. The leaves were formed of emeralds and other green colored stones, while the buds and blossoms were composed of pearls, rubies, sapphires, and other gems of immense value.

The captured robe of state was thickly embroidered with the most beautiful rubies and pearls. The arms, helmets, and scimetars found in the royal treasury fairly flashed with the gleams of the rarest precious stones, so thickly were they incrusted over the metal. At a later period of the monarchy the Sassanian kings adorned the paraphernalia of their courts to a degree of magnificence which is almost incredible. Some of the coins and sculptures yet extant have preserved faithful representations of their luxury in dress. Many of the robes were beautifully embroidered and covered with gems and pearls.

The royal crown at this period, it appears, was not worn by the monarch, but was suspended from the ceiling in the throne-room directly over the king’s head when seated on the throne.

Theophrastus, a Greek writer living three centuries before the Christian era, does not mention the gem in a clear and distinct manner. It is true he alludes to adamas, but it is now thought by several mineralogists that this term was then applied to steel and some of the varieties of corundum. The descriptions of the splendid fêtes given by the army of Alexander at this period, when the wealth of India and Persia was brought forth to deck the Persian maidens, do not mention the diamond.

At this period, and even in later times, the royal insignia and the emblems of Persian authority were such as wreaths and vines of pure gold laden with flowers and clusters composed chiefly of emeralds, rubies, carbuncles, and other bright-colored gems, but not including the adamas. Of like description were those famous canopies under which the ancient potentates of Persia sat and gave their audiences.

Pliny, three centuries later, was the first to describe the gem in unmistakable terms, but even then but very little of a definite character was known of it.

The Romans had access at an early period to the gem-producing countries. Ceylon and India had long been known to the Roman merchants, and their caravans traversed entire Asia from the coast of Syria to the Chinese ocean in two hundred and forty-three days. Their fleets sailed regularly in the time of Claudian from the Red Sea to Ceylon, Coromandel, and Malabar. Ceylon was then famous for its luminous carbuncles and the lustre of its pearls. The famous fairs of Armenia and Nisbis, which attracted the merchants of Asia, also furnished the Romans with many of their luxuries. There certainly were no serious obstacles to the introduction of the gem into the bazaars of the wealthy nations of the Mediterranean in early times and subsequent periods if it was then an article of commerce.

With the ancient history of the gem there is also a remarkable fact to be considered in its study,—its diminutive size. It is believed by many antiquaries that the diamonds known or used by the Romans were well-defined octahedral crystals, of not over four or four and a half karats weight. It may be stated in reply that the exportation of larger gems may have been forbidden by the Hindoo rulers, as we have seen in later times concerning the rubies found in Burmah. But we place but little confidence in this objection. Large and fine gems, had they been known in the days of Roman prosperity and luxury, would surely have found their way from time to time to the wealthy marts of the empire.

There is other evidence to found the belief that most, if not all, of the diamonds of antiquity were of small size. The celebrated traveller and diamond merchant Tavernier boldly asserted in his day, that prior to the sixteenth century the largest diamonds seen in India were about ten to twelve karats weight. Tavernier was well informed of the history of the gem, and had visited several times the most famous mines of India. We are inclined to support the views of the French traveller, and believe that the famous diamonds known as the paragons are of modern discovery, or since the sixteenth century.

CHAPTER III.
DIAMOND LOCALITIES.

The diamond is widely dispersed over the earth, and undoubtedly occurs in countries where its existence is not now suspected. The difficulty of detection has restricted its geographical area in history, yet enough is known to regard its deposition as almost universal, or at least quite as frequent as that of gold. In some countries the deposits are very limited, while in others, like those of Africa, Brazil, and India, they stretch away over immense distances.

We will proceed to give brief descriptions of the well-known diamond districts, and mention others but little known to commerce or the mineralogists. For more extended accounts of the historical mines we must refer the reader to the works of the authors quoted in our text. We will commence with those of Asia.

The diamond fields in India are very extensive, and occur everywhere among the hills of the great range that extends from Cape Comorin through the whole of Bengal for a distance of several hundred miles and with an average breadth of fifty miles.

How long these mines have been known to man must always remain a matter of conjecture; but it is nevertheless certain that the famous mines have been discovered within the past thousand years, and probably a much less period of time. It is stated that many of the gem districts along this range have not been explored carefully, and that the kingdoms of Golconda and Visapour alone have supplied most of the gems known in India. And it is also related that none of these localities have been scientifically mined or surveyed with a view to thorough development.

The most ancient of the diamond mines in India are supposed to be those of Soumelpour, near the river Gonet, a tributary of the Ganges; but the celebrated mines of Golconda and Raolconda have been known only since the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.

The richest mine of India, and the most extraordinary of any yet discovered in the world, is that known by the name of Gani, or Couleur. It is situated under a plain at the foot of a mountain about seven days’ journey west of Golconda, and was discovered by accident about the middle of the sixteenth century.

A native digging the earth to sow millet threw up a bright, clear crystal of twenty-five karats. It was soon recognized to be a diamond, and crowds of Hindoos flocked to the fields to reap the most wonderful harvest of gems yet known. A vast number of large gems were obtained, and among them the Great Mogul, which weighed in its rough condition seven hundred and ninety-three karats. The gems of this mine were remarkable for their large size, but they were not of the clearest and purest water, the color and lustre of the stone seeming to partake of the quality of the earth composing the matrix.

This idea, which prevails among the miners in other gem districts in India and also in other countries, lends support to the belief that the diamonds were formed in the strata of gravel where they are now found, and not in the hard crystalline rocks and afterwards set free by disintegration.

The matrix of these mines, as well as of all the others in different parts of the world, is essentially the same; and consists of rolled or broken masses of quartz, mixed or united with sand or earth impregnated with a ferruginous oxide. Amongst this conglomerate, or immediately below it, mixed with clay, the diamonds are found, and generally unattached to any substance.

The earliest and best accounts of the mines of Golconda are to be found in the narrative of Tavernier, who visited them in the middle of the seventeenth century. At this time they were in prosperous condition and furnished occupation to many thousand men. There were but four mines then worked in Hindostan, and more than sixty thousand miners were employed at the mine of Gani, or Couleur, alone. About thirty years after the last visit of Tavernier, the Earl Marshal of England, who had previously examined the diamond mines on the coast of Coromandel, visited those in Bengal. He found that diamond mines occurred everywhere along the slope of the hills extending through the country; but that very few of them were worked, and that nearly all of the diamonds then supplied to commerce were obtained from the kingdoms of Golconda and Visapour. He gives descriptions of twenty-three mines in Golconda and fifteen in Visapour.

The most famous of these at that time was called Currure, and was worked by the king for his own use. Several very large gems are said to have been found at this locality. It is related that a Portuguese gentleman from Goa, having received permission to explore a part of this mine, had the good fortune to discover a diamond of two hundred and six karats, which so overjoyed him that he erected a large stone over the spot with an inscription in Hindoo commemorative of the event.

Near this place there was another famous mine which yielded stones of fine form and water, occurring in black earth, which is regarded in India as a singular formation. In all the mines of Visapour the diamonds are found in red and yellow earth, and this is generally the color of the matrix elsewhere.

William Methold visited the mines of Golconda at a later period, and relates that at that time they gave employment to about thirty thousand laborers. The means for exploration were then exceedingly simple, and no mechanical contrivances were adopted for excavating the pits or bailing out the water. Shafts were rudely sunk in the earth to the depth of sixty or seventy feet, and the cascalho found at even that depth. It appeared to be reddish, mixed with white and yellow chalk, and was rich in diamonds. Rarely, stones of one hundred and twenty to two hundred karats were found, while those of ten to fifteen karats were quite abundant; but by far the greater number were so minute that it required from eight to twenty of them to weigh a karat.

Within the present century Dr. Buchanan and Mr. Voysey visited the mines of India, and have left interesting and accurate descriptions of their examinations and observations.

The famous mine of Pannah was examined in 1813, and found to be situated in a table-land of great extent a thousand feet or more above the Gangetic plain. The whole plain, wherever the gravelly formation appeared, afforded diamonds at various depths ranging from six feet to twenty-four. Many mines were worked in beds or borders of rivers because they were easy of access, and the lazy natives lacked the ability and means to explore the adjacent plains, which abounded in diamonds, but were destitute of the water required for washing the gravel.

The effect of the Brazilian discovery and its yield of several tons of diamonds was severely felt in Hindostan, and many of its mines were stopped in consequence. Yet there is abundant virgin territory left in India for future successful exploration, if conducted scientifically and with ample means.

The natives, with their rude methods of mining, generally ceased operations when the deposit required the removal of twenty-four feet of superincumbent soil. Hindoo labor, also, though apparently very cheap, is in reality costly when we come to compare their slow and feeble results to the efforts of well organized and conducted operations. Hence the diamond has always been a costly gem in Hindostan, and it is worth more in that country at the present time than in Europe.

Concerning the widespread idea of the reproduction of diamonds in India we will make only a brief allusion at the present time.

This theory does not seem to be of a very recent date, for the Portuguese traveller Garcias, who had been physician to the Viceroy at Goa in the early part of the sixteenth century, and who visited the mines, has left in his treatise published in 1565, some curious notes on the rapid generation of diamonds at that time. And he affirms that the soil a few feet below the surface will, in the interval of two or three years, produce diamonds again; but he also admits that the largest gems are only found at much greater depths.

Mr. Voysey, who examined the principal mines in Southern India in 1821, was also assured by the miners of this reproduction; and from his investigations he was led to adopt similar views.

Dr. Buchanan in 1813 visited the famous Pannah mine, and these views then prevailed at that locality. He examined the diamond-bearing earth, but observed nothing very peculiar in its formation. It seemed to be very red, and characterized by pebbles stained by iron and a great variety of quartz in broken fragments, chiefly white in color, or stained red in places, or dotted with black spots.

The miners who were then operating the mines assured the Doctor “that the generation of diamonds is always going forward, and that they have just as much chance of success in searching earth which has been fourteen or fifteen years unexamined as in digging in what has never been disturbed; and in fact,” he says, “I saw them digging up earth which had evidently been before examined, as it was lying in irregular heaps as thrown out after examination.”

Borneo is thought to be rich in diamonds, but concerning the extent and productiveness of the placers but little definitely is known. The island has long been known as abounding in the gem, but travellers and mineralogists have been prevented from exploring it by a variety of causes, chiefly arising from opposition of the native rulers and difficulty in penetrating into the interior of the country where the mines are found.

Tavernier was desirous of visiting these mines, but was dissuaded from going by these supposed or fancied difficulties, and the fact that the Queen at that time forbade the exportation of the gem. Therefore we have to regret the absence of the report which this able and truthful traveller would have made if he had visited those regions.

The Borneo diamonds are reported to be the best in the world, and to owe their excellence to a faint steel-like tinge and a very vivid adamantine flash. We are inclined to think, however, that diamonds of this description may be found in various countries, and that commerce assigns their locality to Borneo as a matter of convenience and trade.

Borneo is yet a terra incognita, and its features have not yet been made known to geography or even commerce. The second island in size in the world, and itself almost a continent, it presents a vast field to the explorer, with its broad prairies, immeasurable forests, deep and impenetrable jungles, interspersed with lofty ridges of mountains. Its mineral wealth is undetermined, but enough is known to found the belief that the island is one of the richest in this respect on the globe.

Concerning the diamond mines we have but imperfect accounts and none of very recent dates. However, it is known that the character of the mines is the same as that of India and elsewhere, and that the gems are found in a gravelly stratum at various depths below the surface. The best of these mines are said to be situated along the river Lavi, near Sukkademia, and to be worked in a rude manner by the Malays and Chinese. Mines on the northwest coast of the island have been worked extensively, but it is reported that no large diamonds have been discovered there. The Colonial Secretary, Mr. Low, states that the gems are found in the greatest quantities in Sango, Landak, and Banjarmassin, and that the stones, although of small size, are of the purest water.

The quantity of diamonds afforded by Borneo is not exactly known, but a recent writer in the Journal of the Geographical Society of London gives it as about two thousand karats annually. It is also stated by various authorities that the mines of the island have never yet yielded a diamond of thirty-six karats in weight.

If these reports are correct, how can we explain the accounts of the great diamond belonging to the Sultan of Mattan, which may be found in the History of Java, by Sir Stamford Raffles, and also in the Memoirs of the Batavian Society?

The famous mines of Brazil, which gave rise to a new era in the commerce and history of diamonds, were discovered by accident. And we are not aware of an instance of the discovery of a single diamond district or region of country, with the exception of the Urals, which can be ascribed to the results of scientific research. Even the wonderfully rich mines of the Province of Bahia in Brazil were first made known by a slave who noticed the similarity of the soil to that of the diamond mines of Minas Geraes, where he had formerly worked.

In 1727 a Portuguese by the name of Lobo, while visiting the gold mines of the Sierra do Frio, a desolate country about four hundred miles north of Rio Janeiro, noticed some bright crystals of stone which the ignorant miners picked up from time to time and treasured as trifles. Gathering a number of them, he submitted them to some Dutch traders, who informed him as to their valuable character. The Dutch at once contracted with the Brazilian Government for all of the rough diamonds that might be found, and for a long time controlled the trade. The mines where the gems were first discovered were situated in the midst of a desolate country destitute of vegetation and of considerable elevation above the level of the sea. Since this period other mining districts have been discovered, and it is now ascertained that the whole of the vast territory situated between the twelfth and twentieth parallels of latitude and extending even to Matto Grosso, a thousand miles distant, belongs to the gem-bearing formation.

This vast space of territory has not been examined scientifically, and but little is known of its condition except that it is diamond yielding. Since their discovery the mines have been worked with more or less activity with slave labor under the direction of companies of large capital. Skilled labor with the modern appliances of science has not yet been employed in these mining districts. And the condition of the country, its laws, and the controlling power of the diamond corporations, will render the application of scientific skill a difficult and hazardous task. The explorations are conducted in a primitive manner during the dry season, which lasts from April to October. They are made generally in the beds of the streams which have been dried up by the summer’s drouth. Rivers are sometimes diverted from their natural course, and their gravelly beds completely removed to sheds on the banks to await the rainy season, when water, which is required for washing, will be in abundance. The cascalho, a name given to the peculiar gravel, composed of quartz fragments mixed with sand and clay united with a ferruginous cement, which contains the diamonds, is then placed in shallow troughs, and a stream of water directed upon it until it is well cleansed, when it is removed and dried in the sun. The dried residue is then carefully searched for diamonds, and it is not always easy to distinguish them among a great variety of pebbles, of which the débris is chiefly composed.

Some of the diamond mines were of great extent and required many laborers to conduct the operations. That of Mandanga employed twelve hundred slaves in its excavations alone, besides many free persons engaged in other duties. The yield of the Brazilian mines at first was enormous, and one thousand one hundred and forty-six ounces of the precious gem were shipped to Lisbon in one year. The vast quantities of the gem thrown upon the markets brought the price of them down to five dollars per karat.

Consternation speedily spread among the diamond dealers all over the world; and many of them, believing that the gems would soon be as common as transparent quartz, declined to invest largely, even at these low prices. But a panic was checked by the prompt action of the Brazilian Government, in claiming the working of the mines as a royal monopoly, and also regulating the supply. In this condition of affairs the working of the mines and the trade remain at the present day; but the African discoveries and free explorations may change this restriction and monopoly if the Cape fields continue to yield their present supply. According to the estimates of Baron d’Eschwège, the quantity of diamonds obtained from the Brazilian mines under the Government restrictions averaged between 1730 and 1814 thirty-six thousand karats annually, the cost of which amounted to nearly four dollars per karat.

From a variety of causes the supply gradually diminished until about the year 1830, when the diminution was so great, coupled with the increased cost of exploration, that the rough stones cost eight dollars per karat. In 1843 the discovery of the Bahia mines increased greatly the yearly supply, which was then about thirty thousand karats. For two years after the discovery of the Sincora mines the supply amounted to six hundred thousand karats. But the great distance of the mines from the large towns and the coast, the fearful malaria which prevailed in the district, together with the difficulty of obtaining supplies, have prevented the working of the mines to any great extent; and in consequence the supply in 1852 sank to one hundred and thirty thousand karats. In 1732 the price of the rough gem was five dollars per karat, but in three years after it rose to about eight dollars per karat, and remained at that figure as late as 1742.

The Brazilian diamonds are generally very small compared with those yielded by some of the India mines, like that of Gani, which produced a great many gems of ten to forty karats weight. Of the Brazilian yield it was found by Professor Tennant that out of one thousand diamonds, one half weighed less than half a karat; three hundred, less than one karat; eighty, one and a half karats; one hundred and nineteen varied from two to twenty karats, and only one reached twenty-four karats.

Brazil still exports annually diamonds to the value of several millions of dollars, but the exploration has probably been checked by the influx from South Africa and the consequent fall in prices.

Out of the immense number of gems yielded by these mines,—the district of Minas Geraes is said to have produced two tons in weight,—it is strange that more large gems have not been found.

Quite a number of diamonds exceeding fifty karats have been discovered, and several over one hundred karats, the largest being known as the Star of the South, which weighed two hundred and fifty-four karats. This fine gem was found in 1853 in the mines of Begagem by a negress. It was in the form of a dodecahedral crystal. Another fine gem, called the Abaethe, was found in 1797 in the alluvium of the river Abaethe. Three convicts, banished into the interior of the savage country, wandered about from thicket to thicket and mountain to mountain, in hope of discovering some treasure that would restore them again to their friends. After six years of weary wanderings and severe privations they at length stumbled upon a diamond of one hundred and five karats in the bed of the river above named. They ventured to return to the inhabited regions and confided their good fortune to a priest. He took them at once to the Governor of Villa-Rica, who suspended the sentence of the convicts and sent the priest to Rio Janeiro with the gem.

A frigate was despatched with the treasure and the clergyman to Lisbon. The King, delighted with his acquisition, fully pardoned the convicts and advanced the priest to a high rank in his profession.

Many attempts have been made to trace the diamonds of Minas Geraes to primitive and unbroken rocks on the more elevated plateaux or even among the more distant mountains. And sometimes the gems have been found in cascalho at a great elevation, or perhaps in crevices of the sandstones; and hence the idea has arisen that the solid matrix has been found. The cascalho is the true matrix, whether found in the lowlands or on the mountain peaks. The color of this conglomerate is not uniform and varies in many districts. At the rich St. Antonio’s mine it is of a dark gray; at the Veneno it is of a light ochre with lumps cemented with ferruginous oxide; in the Pitanga mine it is of a light gray and almost white, and contains but few diamonds, but of the finest quality. The observer is sometimes led to believe that the abundance of the ferruginous oxide is evidence of the abundance of gems, and this fact is also noticed in the famous mines of Ceylon, where, however, the diamond does not occur.

Concerning the accounts of finding the diamonds in Brazil in their native rock, as described by Claussen and later still by Redington, we are not yet willing to give full credence any more than to the stories of diamonds having been found in the “old rock” in India. We have no doubt of the gem having been found in what appears to be a soft sandstone, but which is in reality a secondary product like the heterogeneous cascalho. And we can conceive this sandstone-like deposit to be formed at the bottom of lagoons under like conditions which gave origin to the conglomerate.

Claussen published in the Bulletins of the Academy of Sciences and Belles-lettres at Brussels, in 1841, an interesting account of his observations while searching for a matrix of the diamond.

He affirms that the gems are found at the mines of Grammagon in beds of a soft sandstone, which he calls a psammite sandstone, and which resembles the itacolumite, which is much harder. He also describes several specimens in which the gems are embedded in the sandstone, but admits that they are not very common. The same writer mentions instances where they are said to have occurred between plates of mica like the flattened garnets. Furthermore, he states that the crystals found in the itacolumite are rounded octahedrons and those found in psammite sandstone are perfect octahedrons.

Claussen, although he believed the itacolumite to be the matrix of the gem, was unable to explain its total absence in places where the itacolumite was greatly developed. He was also forced, when tracing the origin of the cascalho, to admit the existence of a secondary itacolumite posterior to the transition formation.

It is interesting as well as perplexing to follow the multitude of views expressed by mineralogists when attempting to explain the formation of the diamond. Most of them are determined to give the gem an ancient origin, and insist upon the action of plutonic forces upon dioritic veins. Humboldt maintained that the gems of the Ural Mountains had a geological relation to the carboniferous dolomite of Adolfskoi as well as to augitic porphyry. But Verneuil and Murchison, examining the mines, found the alluvia which contained the diamonds had no carbon; therefore the hypothesis was incorrect, and the matrix of the stone must be sought in another direction. The mines of Brazil have been examined during a century past by a number of geologists and amateurs like Mawe, Martins, St. Hilaire, Claussen, Eschwège, Burton, Hartt, and others; and to their works we must refer the reader for extended descriptions of the geological features of the country and the peculiarities of the gem mines.

In the recent exploration of the diamond fields by Professor Hartt, the Professor decidedly opposes the views of Claussen by saying, “I do not believe that the diamond ever occurs in the true palaeozoic itacolumite in Brazil, but that it is derived from the tertiary sandstones.” After casual examination of the diamond-bearing sands of the mines in Bahia, he is also led to believe that they have resulted from the disintegration of Chapada sandstones; and he regrets that they have never been critically examined, for he thinks that the mystery of the origin of the diamond may be solved from their study.

However, from the multitude of hypotheses to which the study of the subject has given rise, we find nothing to shake our confidence in the belief of the formation of the diamond in the secondary gravel beds where they are now found.

Shortly after the opening of the Bahia mines, black, brown, and even clay-colored pebbles were found associated with the transparent diamonds in the cascalho. These pebbles were of various sizes, generally quite small, but sometimes appearing in masses as large as one thousand karats. Their nature was not at first recognized, and they were thrown aside with all other stones of little or no value. Finally a quantity was gathered and sent to a merchant in Paris, where they were seen by Count de Douhet. The Count in 1867 presented a notice of them to the Academy of Sciences and pronounced them to be massive carbon, and a variety of the diamond. The exact localities in Brazil where it occurs we are unable to describe, but believe them to be situated in the Province of Bahia. As to the quantity gathered we are also unable to give a definite opinion, but have reason to think that it is quite limited; and, moreover, we have yet to learn that it occurs in any other diamond mines in the world.

The color of the carbon, or carbonado, as it is called by the Brazilians, is generally black, but it may be light-brown or of a greenish gray color, when diluted with clay. It is always opaque, but is not always compact, being sometimes quite porous, like pumice-stone. It never crystallizes, but generally appears in angular pieces in lumps or concretionary masses whose specific gravity is 3 to 3.4, while that of the transparent diamond is 3.5.

The black and perfectly crystallized diamond, which is very rare, is not to be confounded with this variety.

The hardness of the carbon is equal to that of the transparent diamond, and probably some of the purest and most compact specimens are harder even than the limpid variety; for the black gems are generally harder than the light-colored, and we have for instances the deep-blue sapphire, the black tourmaline, etc.

At first this newly discovered mineral was pulverized, and its powdered dust used to polish diamonds and other gems, and was then sold for a few francs the karat. Lately, however, science has applied its use to new inventions; and the demand for it in its application to the drill and the saw has increased its value to several dollars the karat, and the price is still increasing. Its advantages over the crystallized varieties are very decided, and it is as hard and has no cleavage planes, and is therefore far better able to resist the effects of shock.

The only diamond known to have been found in modern times in Western Europe is that picked up in a brook in the County of Fermanagh in Ireland. Its weight was not given, but it was stated to be of a reddish cast and valued by Mr. Rundell at twenty guineas. Some mineralogists have maintained that the stone in question was not in place and was probably brought in the crop of some bird of passage from Brazil or the tropical countries of America.

To us, however, a more plausible and probable theory would be that the stone was in place, and that its presence is no more remarkable than the gold nuggets found in the same country. In fact, this instance is no more strange than the finding of the great American diamond in Virginia, which was also a solitaire and many miles below the auriferous fields whence it is supposed to have drifted. We shall not be surprised to learn of the occurrence of diamonds in other parts of Europe. Pliny ends his chapter on the diamond by stating on the authority of Scepsius that diamonds are found in Germany and in the island of Basilia along with amber.

Eastern Russia was long ago suspected of being diamondiferous; and as early as 1826 Maurice Englehardt pointed out the resemblance of the Ural districts to those of Brazil. It was, however, left to Humboldt and his companions to make known the actual occurrence of these gems in this country. For in 1829, during their visit to Siberia, they discovered several diamonds on the estates of Count Porlier, about one hundred and sixty miles west of Perm, on the western declivity of the Ural Mountains. Active search having been instituted, forty diamonds were found in the detritus on the banks of the Adolfskoi. Strange to relate, they were discovered in the gold-bearing alluvium twenty feet above the stratum containing bones of mammoths and rhinoceroses. Since this period they have also been found at several other places along the Uralian chain.

In commenting upon the occurrence of these diamonds of the Adolfskoi which are preserved in the collection of Prince Butera, some of our best geologists have come to a startling conclusion.

Humboldt, Sir Roderick Murchison, and M. Verneuil, obtaining information from different points in Siberia, have been led to the belief that the diamond in these localities was formed at a date subsequent to the destruction of the mammoths.

Since this period Colonel Helmersen has made known other points along the Uralian chain of mountains where the gem has been found, as Ekaterinsburg, Kushvinsk, and Versch-Urak. But we have no information of “placers” of any considerable extent having been discovered, or the finding of the gem in sufficient numbers to warrant systematic explorations.

Future research may reveal other localities in Siberia where this gem occurs, for the country was known to the ancients as furnishing the adamas.

Amnian in the fourth century mentions the region of Agathyrsi as one of the gem-bearing countries; and this country included the Ural Mountains and part of Siberia. It is not at all strange that the exact localities should have been forgotten during the long intervening space of time and the many political convulsions that have interrupted commercial intercourse with those far-off regions.

It was well known that Scythia furnished the ancients with gold for centuries; but in modern times all trace of the localities was lost until revealed by the researches of German miners exploring for copper and iron. Stranger still, the locality of the gold mines in Spain, so famous in ancient times, is unknown at the present day.

The gold fields of the Southern States of North America have been known to be diamond-bearing for forty years or more, but as yet no earnest or well-directed search has been made for the gems. During this period of time more than thirty diamonds have been picked up by accident along the gold belt which extends from the central and eastern portion of Alabama, through Georgia, North and South Carolina, even to the interior of Virginia. All along this auriferous formation the itacolumite appears in the gravel beds or in ledges or even in large mountains in some localities.

In Alabama, where the itacolumite is abundant, several fine diamonds of three or four karats weight have been found.

The northeastern portion of Georgia has also yielded some beautiful stones to the miners while washing for gold. Some of these we have seen and found them to be of the purest water. The Glade mines, a few miles north of Gainesville, have yielded several fine diamonds, some of which have been cut in London. They were found by accident in the riffles of the gold-washing machines, and were preserved by the miners simply as curiosities. At the Horshaw gold mines, a few miles farther to the northeast, a large diamond was picked up, but unfortunately destroyed by the ignorance of the laborers, who unluckily reasoned like the ancients concerning its destructibility, and therefore tried the effects of a heavy sledge upon it while placed on an anvil. An examination of this last deposit in 1866 convinced the writer that it was a true diamond field; and search was rewarded with the finding of two small but well-crystallized diamonds. So far as we can ascertain, all the diamonds thus far discovered in these regions have been finely crystallized.

North Carolina has also yielded some fine specimens of three and four karats weight; but the largest diamond thus far found in the United States and preserved was picked up in 1856 on the banks of the James River, opposite the city of Richmond in Virginia. The spring floods had probably washed it down from the gold fields which are situated a few miles above. The stone was a well-defined octahedral crystal. Its weight, while in the rough state, was about twenty-five karats, and its color was of a faint greenish white tinge. Its transparency was perfect, but its refractions were somewhat impaired by a flaw or a speck in the interior.

The American diamond-cutting establishment of Morse, Crosby, & Foss, of Boston, cut this gem very successfully at the cost of about $1,300. The stone was purchased by a distinguished American athlete in New York, and worn by him in a breast-pin for many years.

None of these diamond fields have been examined systematically by experienced miners with a view to their development, and in fact no definite idea of their limit or their value can be given. But we have the impression that they are far more extensive than has been imagined by mineralogists. The returning gem-seekers who have been educated in the diamond mines of South Africa may investigate ere long these unknown districts and settle the question beyond further inquiry. In California, a few diamonds are reported to have been found here and there among the gold fields, but nothing like a gem placer has yet been revealed. The geological formations of Arizona and New Mexico are more promising than any part of the United States, and explorations may disclose extensive and valuable gem deposits in those regions. The originators of the famous diamond swindle in Arizona chose their locality with more than ordinary sagacity.

The account of this daring scheme reads more like romance than reality, and it was more than ordinary boldness that prompted the perpetrators to visit foreign lands, purchase quantities of rough diamonds and then plant them in a distant, desolate, and hostile country to entrap the wary speculator. The success of this piracy was fortunately checked by the sagacity of one of the United States geologists exploring the adjacent territory, who quickly disclosed the fraud, but not in time to prevent the swindlers from pocketing large sums of money from speculators in California.

Pliny mentioned Arabia as one of the localities of the gem; but modern investigators believe that he founded his views on the facts of the diamonds being obtained from Arabian merchants, and that they really came from other countries.

This probably is the true version of the commerce of the Arabians in those days; but we see no objection to the belief that Arabia may have been a diamond-bearing country in early times, and may possess undeveloped fields at the present day. Northern Africa was also asserted to be diamond yielding, and modern investigators have established the truth of the assertion.

In the year 1867 the attention of gem-seekers was turned to vague reports of the discovery of rich diamond fields in South Africa, and the pages of history were examined closely to prove that in ancient times this continent was known as a diamond country. It is undoubtedly true that Africa yielded diamonds to the ancients, for within thirty years several have been found in Algiers, and are now preserved in the collections of Paris. They were discovered in the auriferous sands of the river Goumal, in the Province of Constantine, by natives while washing for gold. They were small in size but of unmistakable character. This discovery strengthens the ancient report of the Carthaginians’ procuring the gems from the Etrurians, who brought them from the interior of Africa.

In 1867 a diamond was discovered by accident in the soil several hundred miles north of the Cape of Good Hope. The report was not credited, and it was not until a number had been found and tested that the attention of adventurous men was fairly aroused. Success soon rewarded the labors of the first bands of gem-seekers; and the news, widespread over the world, soon brought thousands of determined and hardy men, who are even yet earnestly exploring the gem districts and also revolutionizing the country.

The gem mines now under process of exploration are situated on the Vaal River and its tributaries, the best of them being found near the junction of the Vaal and Orange Rivers and from five to six hundred miles north of the Cape. The locality known as Du Toits Pan soon became famous and yielded a great number of diamonds, some of them over 100 karats and one reaching the great weight of 288³⁄₄ karats. The topography of the country around these mines is characterized by low, flat-topped hills, which strike the observer at once by their singularity. The storm clouds, their frequency, their dull gray hue, their constant commotion, and the nearness of their approach to the earth are also quickly noticed by the new-comer, so strangely different are they from the ordinary atmospheric changes.

Five miles to the north of Du Toits occurs one of the most remarkable mines yet discovered in any part of the world. It is called Colesberg Kopje, and although one of the richest spots of the globe, it is also one of the meanest places on God’s earth. Several thousand men have been actively engaged upon it for a number of years past, and many thousand diamonds have been taken from it. So rich has been its yield that it is stated that four thousand have been obtained in a single day.

The extent of the excavation is enormous, and yet all has been done by simple and even rude means. But little advantage has been taken of the use of machinery and skilled labor, and most of the operations have been conducted in a primitive manner. The distance to the coast and the great expense of transportation is perhaps the principal reason why different and more satisfactory arrangements have not been made.

The photographs of the appearance of this field and its excavations strike one with amazement. The countless array of tents in the distance on the borders of the deposit; the thousands of busy miners; the huge and deep ditches stretching across the plain, vast enough to float a fleet of men-of-war; the lofty mounds of thrown-up earth,—all together present a startling picture never to be forgotten.

The depths of these enormous ditches vary from ten to more than one hundred feet.

All this herculean labor has been performed in less than twenty years under the stimulus of extraordinary prosperity, and it indicates a determination to explore the country thoroughly.

As yet there has been no complete survey of these regions, and the extent of the diamond fields is still unknown. Sufficient evidence, however, has been received to indicate that they cover an area of one thousand square miles, and are situated principally in the Orange River Free State, but also extend into the Transvaal Republic and Cape Colony. These districts alone will afford remunerative labor for some time to come, and we have little doubt but that other fields of even greater extent will before long be discovered in other parts of Africa.

For a long time past we have been led to regard this continent as containing the most extensive and richest diamond deposits on the globe. A great portion of Africa belongs to the geological conditions which produce the diamonds, and the present explorations will educate a host of gem-seekers, who will not only investigate other parts of Africa, but will also explore other countries. Therefore we may expect the diamond trade to receive a strong impetus for some years to come, and that new mines may for a time reduce the present prices of the gem.

The largest diamond yet afforded by the South Africa mines is that called the Stewart. It was found at Waldeck’s plant, in November, 1872, by a man named Antonies. Its form was that of a modified octahedron, beautifully crystallized, and exhibiting a faint tinge of yellow. On the outside of the crystal were a few specks and flaws, but the interior appears to be free from imperfections. Its original weight was 288³⁄₈ karats.

A vast number of the diamonds found in these fields are tinged with a faint hue, generally yellow or faint brown. This peculiarity was also noticed with the yield of the Brazilian mines.

It is quite impossible to give a correct account of the quantity afforded by these mines up to the present time. It amounts to many millions of dollars, and is sufficiently large to produce a marked effect upon the market, but nothing like the panic which followed the discovery of the Brazilian mines. The value of the diamonds exported at Cape Town in 1871 is said to have been $7,500,000, but it was probably much greater.

Australia has afforded to the gold miners quite a number of small diamond crystals, and gem fields undoubtedly occur within its borders. Among the auriferous sands of the Maguarie River minute crystals have been picked by the careless miner from time to time, and other localities have also afforded specimens of the mineral, but no systematic search has yet been made for them. A number of these specimens of diamonds, although of minute form, were exhibited at Melbourne in 1865.

The islands of Java and Sumatra yield diamonds among their mineral treasures, but, strange to say, the island of Ceylon, which is the most remarkable gem deposit in the world, does not produce a single specimen. The island is not far distant from the gem districts of lower Bengal. The formation appears to be of the same character, but it is evident that the geological conditions which deposited the sapphire, the zircon, spinel, etc., differed from those required by the diamond.

CHAPTER IV.
ORIGIN OF THE DIAMOND.

The origin of this precious stone has been a favorite study with man from the earliest times of its history; and, as we have already stated, it has given birth to a multitude of hypotheses.

The peculiar fascination which attends the contemplation of the gems arises partly from their commercial distinction, as well as from certain mysterious properties with which they have been invested not only by tradition but even by scientific research.

We will not, however, venture to affirm that they are more wonderful or deserving of a higher place in the estimation of man than the beautiful and more transient flowers of vegetation. Both are indeed objects of our highest consideration.

The transparent diamonds always occur in crystalline forms, although they sometimes appear almost amorphous or even cylindrical or globular. Its primitive form, however, is the octahedron.

They are found generally in limited deposits, which are often as shallow and well defined as the gold fields, which are termed placers; and therefore we will also call the diamond fields “diamond placers.”

In some “placers” the shapes of the crystals are perfectly regular, while in others they are greatly modified and rendered indistinct. In some mines they occur in fine octahedrons with beautifully truncated edges, but in other districts the rare form of the regular cube may abound. Every section of the diamond-bearing countries seems to have some peculiarity either in color, form, or arrangement of crystal. It is indeed true that experts, from an examination of the rough specimen, are sometimes able to detect the locality whence the diamond was obtained. The same facility may be applied to the natural crystals of other gems, but it cannot be established as a fixed or general rule. The diamond “placers,” distinct and well defined, are far more numerous on the earth’s crust than is generally believed.

A thousand plausible and often ingenious theories on the geological character of the diamond have been advanced in modern times or within a century past; and a great variety of rocks or mineral substances extending from itacolumite to xanthophyllite have been affirmed to be the parent mineral. The real matrix, or such as we believe it to be, of the diamond is the same all over the world. The associate minerals which form the conglomerate in which it is generally found may vary somewhat, but the character of the deposit is but little changed. This matrix is a secondary product, and consists of a conglomerate gravel which once abounded in remains of animal and vegetable life.

The keen eye of Buffon early detected the formation of the true gem strata; and believing that the gems were produced in these peculiar beds by the solar forces, he boldly asserted that they were formed in the superficial strata from débris of older formations, mineral, animal, and vegetable. “On ne peut leur donner d’autre origine, d’autre matrice que la terre limoneuse qui rassemblant les debris des autres matieres.”

This matrix is a well-defined conglomerate, which is found generally on elevated plateaux, and which corresponds to the bottoms of shallow lagoons or lakes of inconsiderable depth. In the earthy portion, which is composed of a variety of débris, occur the diamonds, interspersed among the quartz or rock pebbles, and in a marked and continuous layer. These formations are well known to the geologist, for they occur in almost every country on the globe.

In various parts of the earth’s structure we find solid strata of conglomerate and sandstone, which have been formed at distant and different periods of the world’s history. In other places we may observe the loose materials of the same formation awaiting transformation when exposed to the action of water highly charged with iron, lime, or silica, and we may even see the process taking place at the present day. For example, we will take the broad tracts of level country known in the south of France as the “Landes.” Here we have an excellent illustration of the formation of the gem beds, lacking, however, the precious stones. Below the surface of these plains, and generally at the depth of about three feet, a conglomerate called “allios” has formed, and is still in the process of forming. This stony layer, which is composed of quartz pebbles mixed with sand, has been cemented strongly together by the vegetable and organic matter which has trickled down from the surface of the earth during indefinite periods of time. The action of this organic débris soon renders the conglomerate quite impervious to water, and retards its passing into the sand beds or other strata below. In consequence thereof these broad tracts of level lands become stagnant lagoons of water during the rainy seasons, and all the remains of vegetable and other organic life sink down into these layers of stone, gradually filling up the interstices among the rocks and lesser pebbles.

This collection of decayed various organic substances is generally of a gray or blackish color, or may be of a rusty yellow-hue like ferruginous sandstone. Its cementing power has given a special name to the formation it has caused; and to the gold-miner it is known as hard-pan, to the gem-seeker as cascalho or “mellan.” Its peculiar hue, together with the metallic fracture of its layers, has given rise to the belief that it was composed chiefly of a ferruginous oxide. Recent analysis, however, of the “allios” has shown that this idea is partly erroneous, and that the color and the substance of the formation in reality arises from the juice and débris of plants loaded with tannin and other matter. Iron, it seems from these investigations, is present only in small quantities, and also is afforded by the secretion of vegetable life. However, the quantity of iron in the conglomerate varies considerably in different localities, but most of it seems to be acquired from the action of vegetable vitality.

These conglomerates of the Landes have been a long time in process of formation; but in other localities, like those of the Cape de Verde, to which the waves of the sea have had access, we may witness the transformation going on with rapidity. No great time is required by nature for this production, but rather the application or conjunction of certain materials exposed to the action of chemical changes and telluric forces.

It has been asserted that the diamond has been found embedded in the singular quartzite to which Count D’Eschwège gave the name of itacolumite, but we are inclined from examination of one of these specimens to think that its presence is quite accidental.

In the State of Georgia there are immense beds of itacolumite, appearing, also, here and there along the auriferous formation which extends from Virginia to central Alabama; and they afford ample fields for proof of the statement that the mineral is really the true matrix of the gem. But, after careful examination of some of these exposed rocks, we are led to regard the itacolumite as an associate mineral to the diamond, and that any farther connection with the gem is very distant. Fragments of this rock are quite often found together with quartz in the conglomerate; but we do not regard their presence as essential as that of a ferruginous oxide, which is one of the distinguishing features of all gem mines, and especially of the famous deposits of Ceylon, where the diamond is never found.

The best and most characteristic mines of India, Brazil, and Africa are situated on elevated plateaux, where there is at present but little vegetation.

To give the reader an idea of the formation, we will describe one of the districts of South Africa, which may serve to illustrate all others. At Pnict Kopje, in the Vaal region, the diamonds are found on an elevated plateau one hundred and fifty feet above the river bed; and many of them have been discovered but two or three feet below the surface, in company with fossil wood and even bones. In the Orange River Republic they occur frequently in peculiar isolated and circumscribed spots, called by the miners “pans.” These are basin-like hollows which are filled with water during the wet seasons. In these pans none of the diamonds exhibit signs of abrasion caused by shock or attrition, although the quartz pebbles forming the gravel and conglomerate show in their rounded angles evidences of aqueous action. The gems are not only found in the shallow edges of these hollows, but are taken from depths of one hundred feet and more. And they are always found in their peculiar and connected conglomerate, which seems to have formed at the bottom of some pool or lake. Hence we may explain the superficial depth of the cascalho at the shores of the extinct pond, and the increased depth at central parts of the fields. If motion had taken place among the pebbles forming the conglomerate after the deposition of the diamond, we might properly look for worn surfaces on the gems from shock with contact with loose rocks; for slight blows will mar the surface of the diamond, even if its edges scratch all other minerals with perfect ease.

In these pans the diamonds are natural in form, indicating that they have not moved since the time they were deposited. But in the beds of the rivers which have in later times worn deep ravines in the face of the country we find diamonds with abraded surfaces, having been rolled about by the torrents for indefinite periods of time. Whence come the alluvial soils and the gravel beds which cover the gem strata and completely fill up the lake depression, especially when there are no surrounding elevations to furnish disintegrated material?

This serious question will naturally arise in the minds of all observers; and to answer it clearly will be a difficult task. Sometimes the thought occurs to us that much of the quartz gravel has formed in these pools at subsequent periods and has been broken up and rolled about by the waves until another stratum of alluvium has formed above it; but we will not venture to assert an opinion to this effect. Still, it is a great mystery to ascertain whence some of the quartz pebbles came from in the present elevated condition of the placers and the absence of similar rocks in the vicinity. There is another fact connected with the diamond placers which deserves consideration, and that is their great elevation above the sea level.

The mines of India, Africa, and Brazil are situated at a considerable altitude above the ocean. Those of India are generally a thousand feet above the sea level; while the wonderful gem mines of the adjacent island of Ceylon, which are also true placers, occur but few feet above the line of the tides, but do not yield the diamond. It is certainly remarkable that Ceylon does not afford this gem among the great number of other precious stones. At first thought the idea occurs to the observer that as flora and fauna have their distribution according to certain elevations a similar rule may be applied to the deposition of minerals. But there are too many exceptions known to oppose this view, however pleasing the theory may be.

One of the strongest arguments in favor of the theory of the recent deposition of the gem is connected with its discovery in the gold mines of the Adolfskoi in Siberia. Here they were found in alluvial strata twenty feet above those deposits which contained the bones of the mammoth and the rhinoceros. Hence Humboldt, Murchison, and Verneuil were led to the conclusion that they had been deposited there since the introduction of animal life. There are also some remarkable evidences to sustain the view that these gems were formed in the conglomerate and earth where they are now found. In some of the mines of India they have been taken out of red earth with the earth clinging to their sides as if it had become attached to them, while the crystals were of a soft, glutinous substance. In the Museum of Rio Janeiro there is a large rounded diamond which has very distinct impressions of grains of sand upon its sides. The British Museum contains an octahedral crystal attached to alluvial gold, and Dr. Nello Franka mentions another which enclosed a leaf of gold. A number of specimens have been observed containing splinters of ferruginous quartz and crystals of other substances. The microscope often reveals in the interior of these stones germs of fungi and even vegetable fibres of higher organization, some of which resemble the moss-like appearance seen in the moss agates.

It was from the study of these conditions, connected with the fact that the stone becomes black when strongly heated, that Goppert was led to assert that it could not be of igneous origin. It was also from investigation of the refractive powers of the gem that Sir David Brewster was induced to assume the hypothesis that it was, or that it might be, a congealed secretion of a vegetable production. This distinguished philosopher was seeking a perfect lens for microscopic use; and discovered that the diamond, notwithstanding its immense refractive power, was of very doubtful character in its adaptation to this purpose, and that its laminæ were sometimes of different shades and even arranged in a series of stratification. They not only differed from each other in color and purity, but did not exhibit a common focus. Therefore, Brewster was led to infer from these and other phenomena that the mineral was of vegetable origin, and that its parts must have been held in solution before crystallization took place.

There is nothing very startling in this hypothesis, no more so than in the case of the amber, which is now admitted to be a fossil resin, and which is, in its refractive powers, second only to the diamond. Therefore we cannot object to the theory of vegetable origin on account of the property of brilliancy.

Tavernier observed that the color of the diamonds in India often partook of the color of the gravel in which they were deposited,—white, reddish, blackish, or greenish, according to the color and purity of the matrix. This fact has also been noticed in Brazil; and it lends support to the view that the gems have been deposited under stagnant water, and have received some tinge from its color.

The diamond is admitted by microscopists to be one of the foulest gems known to them; and specimens are rare that do not exhibit cavities, imperfections, or foreign matter in their interior. A painstaking microscopist, after examining the large collection of rough crystals of the East India Company in London, which numbered several hundred specimens, came to the following conclusion: “It seems to be a general truth that there are comparatively few diamonds without cavities and flaws, and that the diamond is a fouler stone than any other used in jewelry.”

Berzelius first called attention to a black substance which he found in a diamond belonging to the collection of Countess Porlier; and since then many other examples have been observed. Frequently black specks resembling anthracite have been noticed in the Brazilian diamonds. Tavernier saw in India a large diamond of one hundred and four karats, whose central portion was so foul as to render the stone worthless. When it was cut open the cavity yielded about eight karats of filth, resembling that of a rotten weed.

The diamond is now recognized by the chemist as a crystalline form of pure carbon. Newton, in 1675, with the wonderful penetration of his genius, and reasoning from the high refractive power of the gem, which so far exceeded the degree due its density, believed it to be combustible. More than a century later the experimentalists of the Academy of Florence strengthened this view by destroying it in the focus of powerful burning mirrors. Lavoisier, however, dispelled all doubts concerning its combustibility by burning it under a receiver filled with oxygen gas. It has since been ascertained that a temperature of 14° Wedgewood completely volatilizes the diamond, producing carbonic acid gas. An English experimentalist, however, has recently declared that the gem may be consumed at a red heat, and maintains that he has accomplished this result by enveloping the stone in certain alkalies.

It has been admitted by eminent geologists that the diamond proceeded from the slow decomposition of vegetable material, and even animal matter, as the requisite carbon could be obtained from either source. But they have also strenuously maintained that the gem was formed under the same conditions of heat as produced the metamorphism of argillaceous and arenaceous schists, these schists being supposed to have once been altered from shales impregnated with carbonaceous substances of organic origin. To this theory the revelations of the microscope offer decisive objections, since this instrument shows that there has been no action of heat in the formation of the stone, for the vegetable remains often detected in the interior of the mineral forbid the development of any considerable degree of caloric. Therefore, as there is no evidence of the influence or effect of heat upon these organic matters within the diamond, the theory must be abandoned.

Geologists have been, perhaps, too tenacious in their views of the origin of many of the rocks that compose the earth’s crust, and especially in maintaining that many crystalline rocks are as old as the dawn of creation. We know that some of these minerals may be produced artificially at the present day, and that the forces that arranged all rocks of a high molecular organization are still in force.

We sometimes speak of old crystalline rocks with the inference that their age is beyond comparison, and therefore undetermined. Yet the microscope is constantly lessening the force of these views by revealing prodigious numbers of minute and animal forms in fossil condition in various kinds of crystalline rocks.

We also observe that various forms of silex have been deposited on the earth in recent periods of its history, and even since the appearance of animal life, for we find their remains transformed into agate. Thus it is evident that nature still possesses the power to deposit certain forms of mineral substances.

Arago and Biot, reasoning from the energy of the refractive power of the diamond, were inclined to believe that it contained hydrogen. Sir Humphrey Davy suspected the presence of oxygen, but sought for it in vain after many careful experiments. Chaucourtois, however, deriving a theory from chemical results, came to the view that the stone is derived by the humid process from a hydrocarburet. Reasoning from the process of forming sulphur from hydro-sulphuretted emanations, he believed that in the humid oxidation of a carburetted hydrogen the hydrogen is oxidized, while part of the carbon becomes carbonic acid, and the rest remains as carbon and may crystallize into diamond.

Supposing this hypothesis to be correct, where do you find the required materials for the formation of the diamond? the reader may ask. At the bottom of these lagoons the decomposition of organic matter furnished abundant means for the production of the gem. Carbonic acid is everywhere produced from the decomposition of animal and vegetable matter. It is constantly evolved from the earth, and has the property of decomposing many of the hardest rocks. It is the cause of that mysterious decay which Dolomieu called “La maladie du granite.”

In carburetted hydrogen we have the united force of two of the most active substances known as organogens, or generators of organic bodies. But of the vast range of their properties, their affinities, and their interior changes we are still profoundly ignorant. We may, however, easily recognize the fact that their combinations and also almost every other chemical compound may be decomposed by electricity or galvanism.

Here then we have a clew, though perhaps distant, to the formation of the gem. Is not the production of drops of water by passing the electric spark through a mixture of hydrogen and atmospheric oxygen suggestive of the manner in which the diamond might be formed from carburetted hydrogen? It is true this experiment in the laboratory has failed to produce the transparent and crystalline form of carbon, although it has thrown down the element in an amorphous state. This failure is by no means decisive, for many of the simple acts of nature are beyond the imitative power of man.

And then again the chemist may exclaim, “How is it possible for the gem to be produced in this manner, when the combination of these elementary bodies is always or nearly always attended with the development of a considerable degree of heat, while the diamond contains at times germs of organic matter? Would not these organic remains be destroyed during this process? On the contrary, they do not exhibit the least trace of the effect of combustion or even heat, and are as well defined as the insects in the fossil resins.” In reply we will point to the formation of fulgurites through the agency of the lightning without the evolution of heat.

History presents some almost incredible examples of the stupidity and obstinacy of mankind in the explanation of natural phenomena. It seems quite impossible that when the German philosopher Chladni, less than a century ago, asserted that meteorites were extra-terranean bodies, the Academies of Europe laughed at him in scorn. Several meteoric showers falling in Europe shortly after did not convince the bigoted philosophers. And when Pictet in 1802 read a paper before the French Institute in favor of the theory, he was insulted by his learned audience. It was not until a year afterwards, when the great meteoric shower occurred in Normandy, that Biot, deputized by the French Government, succeeded in convincing the most sceptical. Yet only a few years previous De Luc, the first meteorologist of Europe, the founder of geology, declared that he would not believe it even if a stone should fall at his feet from the skies. In 1751, Peysonnel presented to the Academy of Sciences at Naples an elaborate memoir in which he very plainly proved that the coral belonged to the animal and not the vegetable kingdom. But his admirable paper was hooted at by the European naturalists; and even the distinguished philosopher Reaumur declared that the idea which was advanced was really too absurd to be discussed.

When we come to review the hypotheses of science during the last century, we shall feel more inclined to be generous and flexible in our views of natural phenomena.

“There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio,
Than are dreamt of in your philosophy.”

The nodular or globular forms of the gem present no serious objection to the idea of vegetable or animal origin; and we may refer for argument to the calcareous nodules of the old red sandstone. These concretionary and radiated masses are merely sarcophagi of animal remains; and their arrangement plainly shows the chemical influences of decaying animal matter and also the multiple and varied effect of crystalline attraction and electric force. Can we say that the crystallized diamonds occurring in well-defined placers are any more remarkable than the little globular petrifactions found in the cretaceous formation and known as the Coscinopora globularis, and which nature provided with a perforation so that ancient man adopted them as ornaments in place of beads?

We are often reminded by the antiquary of the remarkable foresight or acuteness of the ancient poet Lucretius in his explanation of certain natural phenomena which have since been verified by modern science. But of all the heaven-inspired dreamers none have come nearer the truth in terrestrial matters than the Arabian poet Fizee, who wrote:—

“The sun from whom the seven seas obtain pearls,
The black stone from his rays obtains the jewel,
The mine from the correcting influence of his beams obtains gold.”

Plato believed that the gems were produced by a sort of vivifying spirit descending from the stars. It is undoubtedly from the influence of the solar forces and the magnetic and electric currents which are constantly playing through the crust of the earth that the gems derive their origin.

These phenomena of the earth’s vitality are manifested in their greatest force along certain elliptics, which may be traced over the true gem districts of Asia, Africa, and Brazil, and in marked contrast to adjacent territories. The miners in South Africa, disturbed by the severe whirlwinds and frequent thunder-storms, soon began to imagine that the excessive electric action had something to do with the creation of the gems they sought. Mr. Voysey, Geologist to the India Survey, also observed the very marked telluric action in the diamond formations of India, and moreover that the process of crystallization took place there with wonderful rapidity. So convinced was this keen observer of the present reproduction of gems in the alluvial soil or conglomerate that he commenced to collect the proofs of recrystallization. Unfortunately for science, Mr. Voysey died shortly after he adopted these views. Dr. Buchanan, another traveller who visited many of the mines of India, was impressed with this idea; and he was assured by the miners all over India that the regeneration of diamonds is always going on in the peculiar gravel. In proof of their statements, many men were then engaged in working over the débris that had been examined many years before. An interval of fifteen years was sufficient in their estimation to reproduce new gems, at least to a certain extent. This reproduction, or rather, we will say, assertion of a reproduction, reminds one of the mysterious action of the nitre beds, which yield rich returns after a rest of a few years, and especially those which occur among rocks which are destitute of potash.

It is to the learned Abbé Haüy we owe the theory that crystals are made up of an assemblage of minute parts or molecules, each having the same definite form. To the diamond especially this hypothesis may be applied, since it is composed of thin laminæ covering or concealing its primary form. With the aid of the skill of the artisan we can remove these coverings one after the other, until the definite and elementary form of the crystal be revealed. In the time of Louis XIV. it was thought that the size of diamonds might be increased by placing them in certain solutions, as crystals of salt are enlarged by immersing them in solutions of the same substance. But the difficulty then was to find the required liquid; and even at the present day we have not yet succeeded in discovering the composition of the water of crystallization of crystals of quartz or topaz, although Nature has shown the fluid to us in the cavities of certain crystals.

These curious speculations which were discussed in the days of the “Grand Monarque” are again revived by the theory that gold nuggets are not only deposited from aqueous solutions, but are actually increasing in size under certain influences and conditions.

But where does this metal come from? the inquirer may ask. From a variety of sources, we may reply. Does not the water of the ocean contain it in appreciable quantities, and did not M. Sage extract it from the ashes of certain burned vegetable substances? We also know for a certainty that iron is produced by vegetable vitality, but we will not attempt to explain the manner or whence the material is primarily derived. Cosmic dust or the invisible atoms of the atmosphere may be the source. The origin of the gold nuggets and the particles of gold-dust in the well-defined placers, as advanced in the hypotheses of Raymond and Murray within the past few years, is connected very closely with the theory of the recent formation of diamonds in similar placers.

In connection with this theme, it is proper to make a digression in explanation of the condition and formation of the gold placers, as they seem to be highly suggestive of the depositions of the diamond placers. Gold is often found in the same strata with the diamonds, and the presence of the one sometimes indicates the deposition of the other. But this is not invariably the fact. Yet the peculiar formation in which the metal and the gem occur leads the geologist to similar trains of reasoning when seeking to explain their presence in the tertiary strata of very recent times. It has been generally supposed that all alluvial gold is the result of disintegration of the old crystalline rocks. But we now distinguish placer gold into two kinds, as the alluvial and that which results from decomposition of quartz reefs. The distinction between these two qualities of the same metal arises from differences which are quite strongly marked. The alluvial gold is generally much purer than the reef gold; and the reefs rarely, if ever, contain nuggets. The appearance of the nuggets and particles from the true placers, in comparison with the gold-dust evidently set free by aqueous action, is suggestive of a theory that they have been deposited by different agencies.

It has been suggested by Mr. Selwyn, the Government Geologist of Victoria, while studying these differences, that the gold nuggets found in the drift may have been deposited from solutions containing gold by means of electric and chemical agencies. Mr. Skey, analyst to the New Zealand Geological Survey, has recently come to similar conclusions from his researches on the subject. The theory is well illustrated by the formation of crystals and masses of iron pyrites from solutions of that metal; and as gold is often found associated, free and uncombined, in these pyritiferous depositions, there is sufficient evidence to believe there may be some connection in the manner of formation.

From the results of certain chemical experiments in the laboratory, it would appear that organic matter is one of the necessary chemical agents for the decomposition of some of the solutions of gold. Therefore, if we assume this hypothesis to have a positive bearing upon this question, the abundance of organic matter occurring in the gravel beds adds to its weight as an argument. Selwyn found in the gold-bearing drifts of Australia quantities of fragments of wood, roots of trees, and other organic débris to serve as nuclei, or as reagents for the reduction of mineral solutions. We may introduce as evidence the formation of iron pyrites in crystalline forms, which is taking place at the present day under the action of sea-water. The metal in these instances replaces the organic structure of wood, or assumes definite forms with a particle of organic matter as a nucleus.

The formation of gold nuggets from solutions of the metal is by no means as wonderful or difficult of explanation as some other phenomena witnessed in metallurgy. The strange play of pseudomorphism is well defined in some instances, if not well understood. Here we observe that the peculiarity of form may be rigidly adhered to, while the composition is completely changed. In the waters of certain copper mines, drills, rings, and bars of iron that have accidentally been left have in course of time become transformed into pure copper. The iron of the implements has changed places with the atoms of copper held in solution.

In connection with this interesting theory, there are some puzzling facts to be deduced from the phenomena of the auriferous sand beds of some of the rivers of Europe. The gold placers along the coast of the Danube and the Rhine are situated far from the mountains, the supposed sources of the metal, and there are also wide barren districts intervening. The river Tesino affords no gold in its sands until its waters have passed through and beyond Lake Maggiore. From these and other examples, it is quite evident that the gold which appears in these river beds has been derived from the placers through which the rivers have passed, and not from quartz reefs in the distant mountainous regions. The situation of these placers, with the evenness and regularity of their deposits, also the absence of auriferous ledges among the contiguous rocks, permit the observer to indulge in the idea that the gold may have been deposited from solutions and not from the decomposition of crystalline rocks. We certainly have sufficient evidence to object to that final explanation which ascribes all these depositions to aqueous action in distant times, and to the abrasion of primitive mountains, the evidence of whose existence is alone and doubtfully afforded by the débris which form the strata of the gold and diamond placers. The ancients long ago noticed the deposition of gold in the beds of rivers; hence the phrase “The gold-breeding sands of Pactolus.”

It has been a favorite theory with many persons of a philosophic turn of mind that all organic forms were created upon the earth not by mere chance or hap-hazard, nor by what have been called by the early geologists “freaks of nature,” but, on the contrary, with some definite intent on the part of the Creator, and perhaps for the welfare of mankind. Some of these far-sighted thinkers have advanced their views so far as to maintain that even obscure animal and vegetable forms may have some indirect or distant effect upon the well-being of man. We all must admit that it is indeed a beautiful hypothesis, even if it be contested by stern and savage arguments. But if we indulge in this manner of reasoning, there seems to be hardly a limit in natural philosophy in which we may not seek for evidence.

Can we not include the subject of our treatise among those things which are supposed to have some influence upon the moulding of human character? Certainly its geological age, its origin, the beauties and wonders of its physical properties, and their application to art and science as well as to the wants of society, furnish evidence to sustain an inference.

But how can a cold, inanimate object like a gem influence the condition or expansion of the human intellect? the rigid materialist may say. The gems, he will maintain, apply only to the superficial wants of man, and directly tend to degrade rather than elevate our natural morals; that they are articles of commerce, and that commerce debases our natural instincts.

On the contrary, we may say that the beautiful in nature of whatever degree is calculated to assist in the development of mental culture; and without these beautiful lessons and examples constantly spread out before us, man would always have remained in a state of utter barbarism. As we look back upon the history of life, how many of the triumphs of human architecture may be traced to the suggestions arising from the observance of the varied forms of nature! Nearly all of the beauties of the Gothic or Grecian styles may be found existing in the fossil relics of by-gone ages or even in the multiple forms of existing vegetation. What grand deductions Newton derived from his studies of the glories of the opal and the iridescent gleams of the soap-bubble!

Let us follow our theme a little longer. In reviewing the fragmentary remains of the early periods of the earth’s history, the observer will admit that there has been a marked progress in even vegetable life as well as in the animal. For in the primitive ages we find the non-flowering plants were more numerous than the flowering species. Therefore, in contemplating the precedence of succession of animal and vegetable life, the thought naturally occurs to us that perhaps the most delicate and beautiful of all our flowers elate from recent geological periods.

We may also apply this hypothesis to the gems, and perhaps maintain that they too have arrived at perfection by progressive stages. The corundum, for instance, in the primitive rocks is never so pure and perfect as the nodules and crystals found in the true gem strata of recent formations. The emerald of the limestone is also incomparably above the beryls of the granites. The spinels, the chrysoberyls, the zircons, and the topazes of the gem beds are generally far superior to those found in the old crystalline rocks. There are, however, some plain exceptions to this plausible theory; and the finest of the tourmalines are found in cavities in granite ledges that appear to be of an early age.

We are also sometimes inclined to think that color in the early ages of terrestrial life was wanting in the rich hues which now deck animate nature. For of all the relics of the old geologic forms that are preserved to us their colors are either greatly faded or were at first faintly painted. Even in the tertiary division the hues are not beautiful. The shells, however, exhibit a trace of the pearly hue of the nacre, which may once have shone as brightly as in the modern mollusca. Some of the fossil fishes display a gleam of the silver tints that now glisten on the sides of the living species. Fossil corals preserved in the marble, however, have retained the beauty of form but lost all delicacy of hue, if they ever possessed any. Still, absence of bright and glowing colors of the animals in a fossil state is by no means conclusive evidence that nature was then devoid of external decoration. For we may see on every side how the beautiful hues of animal and vegetable life may fade and disappear altogether on the suspension of vital activity; and also how the process of solidification and petrifaction may modify or even obliterate all traces of organic color. It is, however, a fact that the richest-colored gems and minerals are found near the surface of the earth, as though they required the direct influence of the solar rays, like the finest varieties of colored coral and the gorgeous flowers of vegetation.

In reflecting upon these phenomena, and in seeking for the causes that led to the creation of the diamond, and sifting down the evidence that science has patiently brought to light, we are naturally led to philosophic musings. It is a singular reflection that much of our commercial greatness is derived from luxuriant vegetations of early ages of the earth’s history. How much pleasure, how many of the comforts of civilization and even the necessities of life, do we owe to the extinct fauna of by-gone ages! Even invalid man, seeking to restore the exhausted fountains of his shattered nature in the waters of some of the sulphur springs, quaffs the life-restoring principles from the mineral and animal débris of the lower ocean of the old red sandstone. Here, then, is a happy adaptation of the vague and empty theory of transmigration of the ancients,—the metempsychosis of Empedocles. Certain elements imprisoned in the earth for ages return again at last to reanimate exhausted man and improve his social life. The same agency in recent times, and by natural though mysterious laws, has produced from similar materials the gem, which seems to be quite as necessary for the superficial wants of mankind as gold or silver.

In studying the earth’s history and examining the successive phases of its development, we are insensibly led to the idea that all these stages, seemingly progressive, never retrograde, were for a definite purpose, if not for the exclusive benefit of mankind. For it is only just before the introduction of man that some of the highest orders of vegetation, such as the Rosaceæ, appear on the earth. There is certainly a marked intent in the appearance of the pear, the apple, plum, cherry, peach, and other fruits, with the true grasses, late in the tertiary period.

We may also trace this suggestive progression in the development of even insect life. In the Silurian age the hum of the insect was unheard; and it was not until the oölitic period that this form of animal life appeared. A fossil gem—the amber—reveals the time of the birth of the insect dearest to man; and it was not until the eocene change that the earth heard for the first time

“The soft murmur of the vagrant bee.”

May we not also place in the same category of possible intents the late deposition of the diamond? It is not so very strange, after all, when we come to consider the vast field that lies within the range of the argument.

CHAPTER V.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES, ETC.

Before explaining, or rather attempting to explain, the phenomena of some of the prominent physical properties of the mineral, it is proper that we should give a description of its forms and its natural appearance as it is taken from the mines, so that our reader may become more familiar with the subject. We will not, however, venture very far among the dry details of crystallography, even if it be a subject of great interest to the student in science. The stone which so readily attracts the eye by its dazzling splendors after it has received a definite form and polish from art, is seldom attractive to the view unless it occurs in a rare and perfect form of crystallization. Even then, in this primitive state it exhibits none of the rainbow play of color which makes the stone so celebrated and so beautiful. In reality, in these rare conditions it is seldom if ever so lustrous and pleasing to the sight as crystals of many other minerals. In general, the diamond is so obscure in its attractions that practised eyes are required for its search.

Recently the distinguished savant Von Tschudi, in visiting some of the diamond mines of Brazil, was unable to distinguish readily the gems as they lay in the washed cascalho, while the trained eyes of the negro miners picked them out with ease. It has been stated that the diamonds are always or nearly always covered with an earthy crust of various hues, especially greenish or yellowish, which is hardly the fact; for what appears to be a crust is often caused by the salient edges of the laminæ, among which a little earthy or coloring matter has been introduced. These extraneous colors generally disappear when the surface of the stone is removed; and, in fact, the degree of their intensity is very much modified when the rough gem is placed in alcohol or in any fluid of high refraction.

The dull, whitish appearance seen in the natural diamonds is also produced by the action of fire, which raises the edges of the laminæ, producing a faint milky aspect.

The primitive form of the mineral is the octahedron, and many irregular masses may be reduced by cleavage to that of a double pyramid. These octahedral crystals are sometimes as perfect in outline as a mathematical model, with clean-cut angles and smooth faces. In some specimens the edges may be truncated, that is, as if they had been flattened or ground off by mechanical means. Generally, however, the crystals are of the form of the octahedrons with rounded faces. The dodecahedrons, with their twelve faces, and the cubes, with their four sides, may also be reduced by cleavage to the primitive form of the double pyramid. Sometimes two crystals are united, forming what are called hemitrope or twin crystals. Then, again, a number may be grouped together, assuming on the whole a globular-like mass. But they are decidedly different from the globular, which in their form of crystallization radiate from the centre of the crystal.

The variety of diamond called boart, or bort, deriving its name from the supposed abortive attempt of nature to form a perfect crystal, is also quite deficient in cleavage, or its laminæ are so irregular as to render splitting quite impossible and the cutting of the stone equally so. The transparency of these forms is also affected by the arrangement of crystallization; hence they are generally crushed into powder for polishing material or used for various purposes in the arts. The specific gravity of these varieties seems to be influenced by the manner of crystallization. For instances, we find that the fine transparent crystals have a specific gravity of 3.55 (water being considered the standard as 1), while the bort is somewhat less; and the massive variety called the carbonado varies from 3 to 3.4, according to the amount of earthy matter it may contain. It has also been asserted that the blue, the green, the orange, and the red varieties are heavier than the white. The phenomena of electricity observed in the diamond are not remarkable, and are inferior to most of the gems. Some of the precious stones when excited retain their electrical properties for hours or even days, but the diamond loses it almost immediately. It exhibits vitreous electricity when rubbed.

Much has been said and written concerning the artificial phosphorescence exhibited by the diamond when removed to a dark room after having been exposed for a short time to the sun’s rays. We are not able to verify this statement, and feel inclined to doubt its correctness, although we have been assured by experimenters of the fact.

One of the most remarkable properties of the diamond is its extreme hardness, in which it far exceeds all known substances in the mineral kingdom. This peculiarity is due to the substance itself, but appears to be modified by its color and its form of crystallization like some other minerals.

The more perfectly the crystal is formed, the easier its laminæ become detached, and the softer the substance appears to be. In the globular forms, which are quite deficient in cleavage planes, the hardness is excessive, and often resists the most determined efforts of the lapidary. Even in fine crystals we shall find that certain angles are harder than others; and we may observe the same relative degree among crystals of other minerals, like those of the topaz. In the large transparent diamonds of irregular form, spots of excessive hardness are often found. These are called by the lapidaries “knots,” and appear to be due to a change in the process of crystallization. The coloring matter, or the mode of its formation, seems to affect the degree of hardness in many minerals; and in respect to the diamond, the rare crystallized black form is harder than the limpid or lighter colored.

Some years ago a black diamond from Borneo was placed in the hand of Gallais the lapidary, to be experimented upon at the expense of the French Institute. The chief object of the test was to ascertain the relative degree of hardness in comparison with some of the other varieties of diamond. In this trial the lapidary wore out his steel wheel and a large quantity of ordinary diamond dust without making the least impression on the surface of the black diamond. Although heavily loaded with weights, it lost none of its roughness, and was heated almost to whiteness by the friction of the wheel, which revolved with great velocity. During the period of this extreme velocity it is reported that a shower of sparks was emitted; but how shall we account for this scintillation, when the ordinary transparent diamond does not give forth sparks when struck by steel?

The carbonado, which is amorphous and without cleavage, is also extremely hard. The term “adamas,” which the ancients bestowed upon it as denoting an invincible infrangibility, is not quite appropriate; for although it is far superior in hardness to all other known substances, it is in reality very fragile. And in the power to resist the effect of shock it is also inferior to some of the other gems, and especially the sapphire. Therefore several mineralogists have thought that the ancients really applied the term to steel or to some of the varieties of corundum, like the ruby and the sapphire, and not the diamond. It is curious that this property should be ascribed erroneously to the diamond for so many ages, when a trifling experiment would have disclosed the real condition of things. In the days of the poet Lucretius the gem was believed to be able to resist violent blows.

——“adamantina saxa
Prima acie constant, ictus contemnere sueta.”

Pliny entertained the same idea, and also that its infrangibility could be overcome only by first steeping it in goats’ blood. Even in mediæval times Ben Mansur, the Persian mineralogist, gravely states that a diamond laid upon the anvil and struck by a hammer would not be broken, but would be driven by the violence of the blow into the substance of the anvil. This stupid but wide-spread idea has prevailed even in modern times; and many a gem has been sacrificed by the ignorant in testing the character of the stone. The brittleness of the gem is partly due to its singular cleavage, which in regular crystals is so perfect and uniform as to permit the lapidary to remove the laminæ so as to entirely demolish the structure of the crystal. But when once accomplished, no artisan, however skilful, can replace them again. The facility with which the stone may be separated was known in ancient times among the Hindoos, and probably in Europe as early as the sixteenth century, as De Boot knew of a physician who could divide the diamond into thin scales like a piece of talc; but it was forgotten until Wollaston not many years ago stumbled upon the secret of cleavage and made it known to modern science.

The real charm and value of the diamond lie in its remarkable brilliancy, and in the wonderful prismatic display of the bright and beautiful colors, which are constantly fugitive, but perpetually returning, as the learned Abbé Haüy elegantly expresses it. When a ray of light is reflected from the surface of a body, a particular impression is conveyed to the eye, which we may properly term the eclat. This impression is often so decided and so varied in its effects, that we are able to distinguish certain substances at a glance; and the reflection from the diamond exhibits a peculiarity which is seen only in a very few substances. This is known as the adamantine flash, and none of the gems display it to any marked degree except the rare zircon. We witness the perfection of this property in the black and opaque but crystallized diamond, when faceted by art; and also in some few minerals of which we shall soon make mention. When the rays of light are refracted, after passing through the transparent diamond after it has been cut in a certain manner, and its facets are arranged in an exact relation to each other, then we obtain the remarkable exhibition of color which is known as the prismatic display. This singular property is seen in perfection, or even to any considerable degree, only in the diamond, among all the gems thus far known. But art, however, has succeeded in imitating it in one of her productions of glass, and so admirably, that under favorable circumstances it is quite impossible for the eye alone to distinguish the artificial from the real gem. Some of the theories relating to the causes of these phenomena we will discuss hereafter, and at the present will only say that it is to modern science the diamond owes the full development of its latent beauty; and that the result was not attained until Newton demonstrated the laws that govern the refraction of light. It is only in the brilliant and rose-cut forms, or their modifications, when made with mathematical precision, that the brilliancy and beauty of the stone is displayed in perfection. The ancients, therefore, were not acquainted with the full splendors of the gem. For, being ignorant of the laws of refraction of light, they polished the stone chiefly with the view of preserving its greatest weight; and, at the same time, producing perfect transparency. Hence most of the specimens of ancient and barbaric art are rudely cut, and therefore do not exhibit the degree of beauty which is latent in the mineral. This is also one of the reasons why the luxurious Romans preferred the opal to the diamond, since the polished, or even the rude specimens of opal exhibited their glorious reflections of wondrous hues, both by day and in artificial light by night; while the diamond, with its natural or polished faces, gave forth no prismatic display in the daylight, and but a slight degree comparatively in artificial light at night.

Whence arises this remarkable brilliancy, and to what particular cause is the property due? This inquiry has afforded a fruitful theme of speculation among philosophers, but at the present time we are content to say that the refractive power of the gem is due to the nature of its substance. This is somewhat indefinite, it is true, but what else can we say?

Under the general belief that the harder the gem the higher its refractive powers would be, it has been maintained that the brilliancy of the diamond arose from the simple property of its excessive hardness. Investigation, however, does not sustain this widespread view. Hardness, indeed, may have considerable relation with the arrangement and form of the molecules composing the gem, for in the same crystal it is not uniform,—some faces and angles being harder than others,—but it does not determine the degree of brilliancy. To strengthen this statement we will take for instances the soft minerals, crocroisite, the chromate of lead; the Greenockite, the sulphuret of cadmium; and the octahedrite, the oxide of titanium, which exceed even the diamond in brilliancy. There are also other decided examples among the transparent minerals to sustain this view; the most remarkable of which perhaps may be found in the zircon, a gem which is soft as quartz; yet it ranks next to the diamond in brightness, and far surpasses in eclat every other gem, even the sapphire, which is next to the diamond in hardness. Density does not seem to have anything to do with the determination of the refractive power of gems, for the garnet, spinel, sapphire, and zircon are much heavier than the diamond, and are yet far inferior in brilliancy. The topaz is exactly of the same specific gravity as the diamond (3.55), but nevertheless its refractive powers have but little more than one half the energy of the diamond. The relative brilliancy of the diamond to that of the purest limpid quartz is 8 to 3; but the relative density is only as 4 to 3. All diamonds do not exhibit the same degree of brilliancy, because they do not possess alike the same quality of purity or perfection of crystallization.

We often observe among the minerals that the most perfect specimens are found of a diminutive size; and we shall also find that the finest and purest types of the diamond occur in stones of little weight. The larger crystals, or amorphous masses, seem to be wanting in purity and brightness as compared with the lesser; and this peculiarity may be observed well marked in some of the other gems. Here, then, we may find material for the argument that the degree of brilliancy is in a measure due to the perfection of the crystallization of the stone; and, therefore, the larger and coarser the laminæ of the crystal the less will be its brightness. One thing, however, is certain; that the most brilliant gems are obtained from stones of no great weight, and which also seem, from their form, to indicate a nodular arrangement of particles in their formation; or, in other words, a certain concentric manner of crystallization. This form of deposition is not peculiar to the diamond, but is clearly shown in the sapphires, topazes, chrysoberyls, tourmalines; and the finest specimens of these gems are cut from these nodular forms. We think we are correct in stating that the greatest brilliancy and the most beautiful prismatic display may be observed in diamonds of less than ten karats in weight. In fact, the diminution of brilliancy in the gem, when above twenty karats, is easily discerned by the eye alone, as compared with the vivid and adamantine flash of a pure and perfect four or eight karat stone. The same peculiarity may be observed in the little globular masses of the chrysoberyl, which are seldom larger than a pea in size, but which, when cut, exhibit flashes of fire which are only equalled or excelled by the diamond, or the rarer zircon. We can hardly realize that the little rounded pebbles of white topaz, known as gouttes d’eau, “drops of water,” will yield gems of such lustre as to be often exhibited, and even sold for the diamond. Yet the larger irregular masses, or finely crystallized specimens of the same mineral, do not afford gems of unusual brilliancy. In these instances we may affirm that the form or mode of crystallization has something to do with the degree of brilliancy.

The prismatic play of color which this gem alone possesses to any considerable degree constitutes its chief charm, and its cause has been a matter of earnest study among opticians. A plausible theory has lately been advanced by an English philosopher that the colored rays are produced by the relation of the high refractive to its very low dispersive power. For instance, this refractive power in the diamond, or, in other words, its property of bending a ray of light falling obliquely upon its surface, is 2.439, while that of water is only 1.336, and that of glass 1.500. But its power of dispersing a ray of white light, or, in other words, of separating it into its compound colors in reference to its refractive power, is only 0.038, while that of glass is 0.052. Hence it is surmised that this inferiority of dispersive power is required for the production of the splendid colored reflections which constitute the glory of the gem. It is also maintained that this high refractive power separates the red and the blue rays more than a high dispersive power would in other transparent bodies, and to such degree as to allow each color of the spectrum its full force. As example, the zircon, with its inferior reflections, is offered, its refraction being 1.99 on the established scale, while its dispersive power is as high as 0.044. The relations of the spinel are also as 1.81 to 0.040, and neither does the gem display the rainbow hues. This theory is certainly ingenious, and if correct the test may be applied to other transparent minerals possessing similar relations. We may, therefore, expect the white garnet to exhibit the property of prismatic display, as it has a refractive power of 1.81 and a dispersive power of 0.033. But, unfortunately, perfectly pure and transparent white garnets are unknown, and we must therefore turn to other minerals for comparison.

To the white tourmaline, then, we will apply the test, since this mineral has a refractive power of 1.66, with a dispersive power of only 0.028. Here, then, we have nearly the same relation as observed in the diamond; and, if the theory be correct, we may reasonably expect the exhibition of the same phenomena. But, upon examination of several perfectly white and transparent tourmalines from Mt. Mica, cut into regular brilliants, we have failed to detect an increase of prismatic display, or even discover any evidence to lend support to the plausibility of the hypothesis. We, therefore, reluctantly turn to other arguments for a solution of this most interesting problem.

The snow-white diamond displays the rainbow hues in the greatest perfection; and this is the reason why this quality is sought for in preference to the light buff or deeper yellow, which are in reality more brilliant. The deeper the hue of the gem, the less becomes the prismatic display; and when the diamond becomes of deep and decided hue, the colored reflections cease altogether. It is somewhat singular that the colored gems are generally more brilliant than the pure white, that is, if the color is not so deep as to affect the transparency of the stone. For examples, we shall find that the white sapphire has an index of refraction equal to 1.768, while the blue has 1.794, and the red 1.779. The refractive of the white topaz is 1.610, while the yellow is 1.632.

The brilliancy and rainbow play of the diamond is not so apparent by daylight as by certain kinds of artificial light, when all its latent beauties are called forth as if by magic. The light of the camp-fire in the obscurity of night produces a marvellous effect upon the polished stone; and it is no wonder that the savage heart of the Russian General, Suvaroff, was fascinated by the vivid gleams of his treasured diamonds when viewed at night in the flickering beams of his bivouac fire. It may seem singular that the brilliant white light of gas does not display the qualities of the diamond as the duller flame of the wax candle. The secret lies, perhaps, in the difference in their spectra. Nevertheless, there is a great difference in their effects upon the gem, and it is a fact that the wax candle far exceeds the gaslight in calling forth the latent splendors of the gem. Therefore, we can assert that the brilliancy of toilets where the diamond is much worn depends greatly upon the manner of illuminating the apartment.

We now come to another interesting problem in the study of the nature of the diamond. We refer to the various colors of the gem. As we have maintained that the mineral is of vegetable origin we may be expected to explain the phenomena of its color upon this hypothesis, and also account for the various changes of the gem when exposed to the effects of heat or the fire test. But we must admit with candor that our views concerning this physical property are decidedly unsatisfactory, and shall refer the reader to one of the chapters in our treatise on the Tourmaline, in which are grouped some of the theories relating to the subject. In fact, we may repeat the remarks of Huyghens, who said at the end of the seventeenth century: “In spite of the labors of Newton, no one has yet fully discovered the cause of the color of bodies.” “We must, then,” says M. Babinet, “admire, without penetrating their secret, the unparalleled red of the Oriental ruby, the pure yellow of the topaz, the unmingled greenness of the emerald, the soft blue of the sapphire, and the rich violet of the amethyst. This is not the only thing the discovery of which we shall leave to posterity.”

The color-suite of the mineral is much more extensive and varied than has been generally admitted by mineralogists. We are led to infer from their works that white is the prevailing hue of the gem; but Beudant declares that perfect limpidity and whiteness is rare comparatively, and that the stone is generally affected with yellowish or brownish tints. But what becomes of the vast numbers of these clouded or tinged and inferior gems, if the mines yield so many of them in comparison with the snow-white? Are they consumed in polishing others, or expended in the arts, or have the lapidaries secret processes by which these objectionable tints are expunged from the stone?

Barbot, the French jeweller, declares that, by means of certain particular and energetic agents, aided by a proper degree of heat, he is able to remove the greens of all shades, the light-red, and the yellow, when the coloring matter is superficial, or even situated between the external laminæ. We are inclined to believe Barbot in this particular reference, especially as he admits that he is unable to change much the deep-yellow, the brown, and the smoky-tinted stones. Of the yellow tints, the diamond affords the most beautiful examples, and far surpasses in variety all the other gems, with the exception perhaps of quartz. To the yellow topaz it is decidedly superior in its range of shades, and in some of its chrome-like tints it is without an equal among the gems. This hue of chrome mixed with a faint tinge of green is a delicate, yet gorgeous, shade, and is not often seen. Stones of a canary-yellow are quite common, and perfect resemblances to the Brazilian topaz are not rare. From these hues they pass insensibly into brown and black. The transparent light-brown stones are often modified in hue when exposed to the action of heat, and some of them exhibit remarkable changes of color. M. Halpen, in 1866, exhibited to the French Academy of Sciences a singular diamond of this description. It was a stone of sixty grains weight, and of a whitish hue tinged slightly with brown. But when it was exposed to the action of heat it changed its tint to a fine rose-color, and retained it for six or eight days, when it gradually returned to its natural hue. This remarkable effect was not an accidental result, but was tried five times at the Academy with success and without injury to the stone. In other colored diamonds the action of fire often produces permanent effects, and sometimes a brownish hue is converted into a decided red color. Buckman saw a diamond with a large brown spot in its interior change to a beautiful red, like that of the Balais ruby, after the stone had been placed in borax and exposed to a red heat. Another stone, however, of similar appearance, likewise exposed, changed to a permanent black, to the great injury of the gem and dismay of the experimenter. The red varieties of this mineral are rarely of deep tints, but when they exhibit a decided red color they form the most gorgeous of gems. The largest and finest of this description known is the ten-karat stone purchased by the Emperor Paul of Russia for one hundred thousand roubles. This gem may be considered the marvel of the mineral kingdom. The princely collection of the late Mr. Hope possessed one of a blood-red garnet shade, also a fine twelve and a half karat stone of an apricot hue, besides several others of a beautiful hyacinth red, or of a lilac pink.

The celebrated cabinet of gems belonging to the late Marquis de Drée contained a large and beautiful rose-colored diamond. Prince Riccia, of Naples, acquired in 1830 a very fine rose-colored brilliant of fifteen karats weight. M. Halpen, in 1838, exhibited a magnificent gem of this description of twenty-two and a half karats. Among the crown jewels of France there are several splendid brilliants of a peach-blossom hue, and there are also quite a number to be seen among the princely caskets of Europe. It is, however, somewhat remarkable that this gem, although possessing several shades of red, never, or very rarely, occurs of a decided violet or purple color. Diamonds of a light aqua-marine of greenish and bluish tints are not rare, but those of a positive grass-green color are uncommon. Perfect stones of decided green form the most magnificent gems of this color. The velvety green flashed forth by the extraordinary power of the stone surpasses beyond comparison the finest emeralds with their duller reflections. In fact, we may term the splendid green diamond of forty karats, now in the Green Vaults at Dresden, as being one of the five paragons among all the gems of the world.

In the Museum of Natural History in Paris there are some small diamonds of very fine shades of green, which were collected by the celebrated Werner. Some of the diamonds which have a slight milky hue, when cut so as to allow the play of light within the stone, present a very beautiful appearance. The varied flashes of colored rays, in contrast with the duller hues of the stone, appear like the charming effects of the finest specimens of Siberian adularia, and are therefore entitled to the name of aventurine diamonds.

The asterism, or star-like form of six rays, which is so beautifully displayed by the sapphire when it assumes a certain form of internal arrangement of crystallization, is sometimes, though very rarely, witnessed in the diamond. There is one of this description to be seen in the Museum of the Jardin des Plantes in Paris.

The diamond is rarely found of a perfect shade of blue; but there are now in Europe several magnificent gems of this description. Foremost of all of them stood the famous blue diamond of 67²⁄₁₆ karats, belonging to the French crown. This marvel of Nature’s work, with two other diamonds of paler hue and lesser weight,—thirty-one and ten karats respectively,—disappeared on that fatal night of September, 1792, and have never since been discovered. At the present day, the finest known is that which belongs to the princely collection of the late Mr. Hope, and weighs 44¹⁄₄ karats. It is of a fine blue; but exhibits that steel-like tint which is so often seen in sapphires. The next in value and beauty is that which is preserved at Munich. It is a magnificent gem of thirty-six karats weight, and of superb color.

The crystallized black diamond is a very rare stone; and, when polished, it forms a unique gem, since it exhibits a remarkable brilliancy, proceeding, as it were, from darkness itself. We do not now refer to the compact variety, known as carbon or carbonado, which is never found except in the amorphous form, but the crystalline variety, which is of greater density and more homogeneous. The famous collector, Dogni, possessed a very fine specimen of this kind which had been cut with small facets, and exhibited a vivid eclat. It afterwards came into the possession of Mr. Bapst, who disposed of it to Louis XVIII. for the sum of twenty-four thousand francs. A large and unique diamond, almost black, formerly belonged to the late Duke of York. Several of the European mineralogical cabinets have interesting and valuable collections of colored diamonds; but the finest is to be seen in the Imperial Cabinet of Minerals at Vienna. This beautiful and complete series, which illustrates the great range of the color-suite of the gem, was the life-long labor of a Tyrolese gentleman, by the name of Helmreicher. This enthusiastic amateur went to Brazil, and passed most of his life in the mines, searching for the gems.

We will not fatigue our readers with long quotations of authors and philosophers concerning the spiritual properties of this gem; but we will briefly say, that a well-selected compilation of all these views and speculations, extending back to very early times, would form a chapter by itself, and quite as interesting as absurd. Even the good sense of the Latin philosopher Pliny was affected so far as to indulge in the belief that the gem was not only an antidote to poison, but also freed the mind from vain fears. Late in mediæval times, the adamas was invested with supernatural powers, and regarded as a spiritual creation. And even in the commencement of the seventeenth century Boetius de Boot, in his treatise on gems, asserts that the diamond possesses wonderful metaphysical properties; but remarks that they do not reside in the stone per se, but belong to the angelic spirits whom it has pleased the Almighty to connect, in a mysterious manner, with certain substances in nature.

CHAPTER VI.
THE TURKISH CASKET AND ANCIENT GEMS.

The Sultan of Turkey is said to possess many wonderful diamonds and other gems among the regalia and ornaments treasured up in the strongholds of the Seraglio; but very little is known, definitely and positively, concerning them.

In 1840 the Sultan granted a firman to the Duke of Devonshire and a party of friends, permitting them to examine the court-jewels. One of this party, my illustrious kinsman Dr. Cyrus Hamlin, has recently described to me the impression they made upon his memory, more than thirty years ago. The number of articles was too great, and their effect too dazzling, for the memory to be able to particularize them after so long an interval of time. He remembers that in two strongly built rooms, and displayed on mats, or cushions of velvet, were a vast number of decorations and insignia, crescents, tiaras, clasps, and necklaces, etc. Among the latter was one of wondrous beauty and perfection, which the Sultan wished to present to the Princess of Wales on her visit to Stamboul. The beautiful Princess wore it at the reception she gave the Sultan and his cabinet, but for various reasons was obliged to return the magnificent gift.

Among the arms of former Sultans were the swords of Al-u-deen, and Solyman the Magnificent. Besides their historical renown, they were interesting on account of their superb workmanship, and their decorations with gems of wonderful beauty.

In 1880 an American traveller was admitted to a view of some of the rooms in the Treasury of the Seraglio, and from memory of what he saw there wrote the following description:—

“In the centre of the first room is a throne. It is a platform about two and one half feet square, with a cushion of cloth-of-gold embroidered with pearls, rubies, and diamonds. Around three sides of the cushion is a low rail supported by miniature columns, and standing about eight inches high. The whole body of the throne is overlaid with plates of gold, and the rail is studded with clusters of rubies symmetrically arranged. The first thought that strikes one on seeing this throne is the surpassing value of its jewels, and the second is the superlative discomfort of the concern viewed as a resting-place. The rail, which answers for arms and back, is perpendicular and rectangular, and could rest neither the arms nor the back of the enthroned Sultan. Uneasy the man that sits the throne, must be the Turkish equivalent of the proverb concerning the wearer of the crown. In one corner of the room is another throne, said to be the throne of Nadir Shah, of Persia. It is of some dark wood, delicately inlaid with ivory and pearl, and has a canopy of the same materials, from the centre of which hangs a great gold ball decorated with precious stones.

“In one of the cabinets is the cradle of the imperial babies. It stands low on its rockers, like the cradles now in use in Turkey. The two ends rise a foot above the mattress, and are connected at the top by a bar which runs lengthwise of the cradle. The whole is of solid gold, and the outside of the cradle is crusted with pearls, diamonds, rubies, and turquoises.

“In one of the galleries are the effigies of all the Sultans of Turkey down to Mahmoud the Reformer. The figures are dressed in what professes to be the state robes actually worn by the Sultans whom they represent. The costumes are all different, and differ very much in cut, indicating the changes of fashion during the last five hundred years. But all these dresses agree in the feature of richness. Cloth-of-gold and silk brocade are the materials, and many of the figures are weighed down with jewels. The swords or daggers which all of the figures wear are especially magnificent in their display of precious stones. The dagger of Sultan Mahomet II., the conqueror of Constantinople, has in its handle an emerald full two inches long and an inch thick. I use the adjective ‘thick’ advisedly, for solidity of splendor is the impression left on the mind by that emerald. All of these gentlemen wore large turbans, and bedecked their turbans with diamonds. The only exceptions are seen in the case of the boy Sultan, Osman II., who was killed by his janissaries before he had attained man’s estate, and in the case of Sultan Mahmoud, the Reformer, who alone of all his kinsmen appears in European broadcloth. His head-dress is the fez cap, with a plume of bird-of-paradise feathers fastened in place by a great spray of diamonds.

“But there is no such thing as describing in detail the splendors of these rooms. There are antique arms and armor heavy with gold and jewels; there are innumerable horse-trappings and saddles, covered with plates of gold and studded with emeralds, rubies, topazes, diamonds, and pearls; there are saddle-cloths embroidered with precious stones. Several sofa-covers hang in the cabinets as background to the smaller articles. They are worth $150,000 apiece, and are heavy cloth-of-gold embroidered with seed pearls. In one of the cabinets are three uncut emeralds, the largest being the size of a man’s fist, and the smallest larger than a hen’s egg. The birds of the palace realized the experience of dwelling in cages of gold, for here they hang,—these ancient cages of gold wire. Some of the cages have a clock in the bottom, face downward, so that the royal household might see the time of day as they lolled on the divans beneath. The Imperial Princes appear to have gone to school in childhood, for here are the satchels in which they carried their books,—bags of velvet embroidered with gold and pearls and diamonds. In another place you see many mottoes from the Koran, embroidered in diamonds on red velvet. There are amber mouthpieces for pipes, studded with diamonds and rubies. There are coffee-sets and tea-sets of all degrees of magnificence; and vases of crystal and agate and onyx,—some of these profusely bejewelled. There are inkstands and snuff-boxes innumerable, all glittering with priceless gems. There are royal knives and forks and spoons of solid gold, with jewels on their handles. There is an immense array of clocks. One would suppose that every Sultan had his private clock, which ceased to tick when his heart stopped beating.

“Among the articles in this imperial treasure-house are many which must be regarded simply as toys. Of such is a tea-set of tortoise-shell as thin as paper. Another toy is a lady’s parasol of white silk exquisitely embroidered with gold, the staff of which is a single branch of coral so long and true and well adapted to its purpose that one might search years and fail to find its like. There are also very many fans of varying degrees of splendor. Another one of the toys is a figure of a sultan seated on his throne under a golden canopy ribbed with alternate rubies and emeralds. The whole structure is, perhaps, six inches high. The body of the figure is a single huge pearl, the lower extremities are carved from a blue turquoise, and the turban is a solid mass of diamonds. There is literally no end to the marvels of this place. After every conceivable use has been made of jewels, the surplus unmounted stones are gathered by handfuls into crystal bowls at one end of the cabinets in the second room. The spoils of all the empires which preceded the Ottoman Empire are heaped up in these two dingy stone rooms in the old Seraglio at Constantinople.

“It requires some time fully to realize the enormous wealth of this treasure-house. But slowly one becomes convinced that these treasures can only be the accumulation of centuries, and represent the heritage of the Ottomans from all their predecessors. Once assured of this, the traveller will find a peculiar fitness in the aspect and attitude of the guards of the place. They stand, dressed in spotless black broadcloth, four or five feet apart, in line along the cabinets, perfectly motionless. And they are solemn of countenance, as if standing by the catafalque of some deceased monarch lying in state for the homage of his subjects.

“I first visited this place shortly after the late war with Russia. The Turkish Government was in sore straits for the means of daily existence. The Sultan had just sent his gold and silver plate to the mint to be coined in order to buy up the depreciated paper currency. The people of whole districts were at the verge of starvation because the $80,000,000 of paper money in circulation had lost its purchasing power. I was naturally incredulous as to the reality of what I had seen. If these jewels were real, their value must be sufficient to pay off the dishonored bonds of Turkey. It did not seem reasonable that the Turkish Government could have passed through such straits as those to which it had been reduced by the war without having recourse to their treasure-house. Multitudes of articles in those rooms have an immense antique and artistic value entirely aside from their intrinsic value.

“I spoke in this strain to one of the officers of the Imperial Ottoman Bank, and he replied that the jewels were unquestionably genuine. He said that during the war the Turks borrowed $30,000,000 from the bank. The loan was to be secured by pledge of jewels from this treasure-house, and the bank officials were told to help themselves from its riches. They selected enough of the jewels to guarantee them amply against loss. These jewels were packed in three small boxes and removed to the vaults of the bank. But their removal left no gap in the great accumulation. Afterward I asked a Turk why the Government did not sell this treasure and be at ease. ‘Sell it?’ said the Turk; ‘why, it is the treasure of all the Sultans! It cannot be sold.’

“So there is this treasure-house to-day—a grand relic of ancient splendor—in the hands of the broken, ruined remnant of the house of Osman. The possession of this enormous wealth must be a terrible temptation at times to the worn man who wears the Sacred Sword of Turkey. But he clings to it through all his adversity, for it is the only relic left to the Empire of the glory of its past.”

Two of the oldest authenticated diamonds in Europe belong to the Sultan. One of them, a beautiful stone of twenty-four karats, and which adorns the aigrette of the Imperial plume on days of parade, was found in Constantinople in the time of Mahomet IV. It was picked up by a poor man upon a heap of dirt not far from the gate of Egrikapon. The finder had no idea of the value of his treasure, and sold it for a trifle. Passing through the hands of several purchasers, the gem was finally brought to the notice of the guild of goldsmiths, when its true character was made known. It was then seized by the Grand Vizier and annexed to the Imperial treasures by an edict. The other diamond, which is of greater beauty and weight, was found by a child playing in the Haiwanserai, or the Hebdomon, during the reign of Mahomet II., or about the middle of the fifteenth century. It was believed by the antiquaries that these gems belonged to the treasures of ancient Byzantium, and that the last may have adorned the crown of the Byzantine emperors. This jewel was lost by the fault of the masters of the wardrobe on the place of the Hebdomon during a triumphal march in the twenty-second year of the reign of Justinian, or 548 A.D. We can learn nothing more concerning the condition of these diamonds when found, but infer that they were polished, otherwise they probably would not have attracted the notice of the finders.

Lamartine and other historians of the Ottoman Empire allude to its treasury as in reality a wonderful museum of art, whose wealth is unknown and perhaps incalculable. They state that in four vast apartments beneath the Seraglio, vaulted subterraneously to shelter them from the ravages of fire, are collected the sacred relics, the jewels, the gems, and a great variety of objects of value that have accumulated since the origin of the monarchy. The antiquary may well say in viewing this collection of treasure, “The spoils of the universe are here represented.” For whatever of value and historic worth was saved from the wreck of Rome or preserved from the accumulations of the Greek conquests was gathered at Byzantium. In this fatal Acropolis at the extreme point of the continent of Europe, the Greek Empire had indeed collected all its monuments, all its masterpieces, all its riches, as if to tempt fate and render the prize all the more glittering to the eyes of the Ottomans.

Many, if not the most, of these priceless relics and treasures fell into the clutches of the Turks when Constantinople was won. Nothing escaped at that time. There is no doubt but that many remarkable gems were captured at this period, but concerning their nature and their value history has left us but little more than conjecture.

However, the historians speak definitely of the Greek emperors during their prosperity as displaying a magnificence worthy of the luxurious periods of Rome. The costumes of these rulers are described as marvels of art, and their jewels as of inestimable price. The accounts remind the reader of the descriptions left by Claudian of the treasures of Theodosius:—

“Sidonian mantles rich with purple fold,
Belts bossed with pearls, robes stiff with gems and gold,
And breastplates shining green with emeralds bright,
And helmets rich with precious sapphires dight.”

That diamonds were then used as gems and held in high estimation may be inferred from the single remark of the indignant historian, “One man buys entire Syria with the diamonds of his wife.” Perhaps the word diamond was thus used figuratively, and the expression referred to gems and jewels in general.

Besides these accumulations of the Greeks, much of the spoil collected by Timour in his merciless sack of India and Persia came afterwards into the possession of the Emirs of Asiatic Turkey, and eventually drifted to Constantinople. What these treasures were may be imagined from the glowing descriptions given by the historians of the last scenes of the life and reign of the great Tatar conqueror. The magnificent fêtes given by Timour on his return to Samarcand after the conquest of Arabia and Eastern Turkey, surpassed in historic splendor even the descriptions of Oriental fable. In the gigantic palace erected by him during the days of leisure between his conquests, and which was one of the marvels of the architectural world, he celebrated in a single day the marriage of six of his grandsons. The spoils of the universe were displayed in the decorations of the marriage feasts. The wealth of the Indies had been transferred to the home of the Tatar. Pearls, sapphires, and diamonds were showered in profusion upon the married pairs. Nine times did they change their apparel, and, arrayed in different solid cinctures of a tissue of pearls and diamonds, present themselves to the view of Timour,—the last festivities of the great Tatar chieftain.

This wonderful display of mediæval times recalls to the mind of the antiquary the magnificent marriage feasts of Alexander and his eighty lieutenants with their beautiful Persian brides. This historic festivity took place in Persia 324 B. C., when the Greek army returned from India, and continued for five days. Like that of Timour, it displayed in its magnificence the gems and art treasures of conquered Asia. The diamond, however, does not appear. Art evidently had not then acquired the process by which the natural and rough crystal is developed into a gem of sparkling and lustrous beauty. And the selected brides, to enhance their natural charms, wore pearls, emeralds, rubies, and turquoises wreathed among their tresses of hair, or in their necklaces, amulets, anklets, and bracelets.

Among the treasures supposed to be gathered in these catacombs, of an Empire’s wealth at Constantinople, there is one especially dear to the dilettante,—the wondrous ring of Ahmed. Vanquished in the long, bloody, and desperate battle fought upon the slopes of Olympus when entire Turkey was the prize, Ahmed offered to his victorious brother Selim I. a single gem to purchase the honors of a tomb. This precious stone was set in a ring richly chased in gold, and was the gift of Bajazet II. to the most beloved of his children. It was as dear as the ring Solomon wore, and which was gifted with wonderful powers extending even to the invisible world. But it was as fatal as that which Polycrates cast into the sea as an offering to the gods for his long-continued prosperity. History does not mention the nature of this remarkable treasure, nor relate whether it was diamond, sapphire, or emerald. However, we may glean some idea as to its rarity and beauty from the statement that the Genoese jewellers who were then the gem-venders of the world placed its value at a year’s revenue of all Asia Minor.

The antiquary may also find among these dusty and forgotten collections some of the lost gems and beautiful works of art of ancient Rome, or, perhaps, the rich ornaments brought home by the Macedonian soldiers from their Eastern triumphs, or the holy relics which the Arabs removed from the Gothic treasury at Toledo, and concealed in their fortresses and fastnesses of Syria. In mediæval times the precious stones and all that was marvellous in decorative art that fell into the hands of the Genoese and Venetian merchants went to Constantinople to adorn the magnificence of the Turkish nobles. Whatever the Mamelukes had gathered together in their treasury in Egypt, rescued from the dust of the catacombs, or wrested from the isolated strongholds of Western Africa, was seized by one fell swoop of the Turkish horsemen and transferred to the Bosphorus.

The extravagance of the Turkish nobility during some of the brilliant reigns of the Empire was extreme, and seems to belong to the golden age of fable rather than to the truthful periods of history. We can form some idea of the wealth of these favorites of the Sultans from the glowing descriptions left by the Ottoman historians.

Sinan-Pasha, the Turkish Marius, seven times exiled and seven times consul, yet dying at last at eighty while conducting the army to Hungary, left a heritage worthy of a king. Among his immense possessions the historian enumerates thirty-two cuirasses incrusted with rubies, fifteen strings of huge pearls, sixty bushels of fine pearls, seven tablecloths bespangled with diamonds, all accumulated during campaigns in Europe, Asia, and Africa. Another potentate, the Grand Vizier Sokolli, exhibited a love of magnificence worthy of the most reckless Roman profligates. His garden, near Tokat, was the wonder of Asia Minor, and was called the garden of Paradise, “Djennet-bagni.” Its parterres, instead of being covered with natural flowers, sparkled with rubies and precious stones imitating the form of flowers and surpassing them in splendor. This unique display of art was finally destroyed by the victorious barbarian hordes from Asia, and the beautiful imitations of flowering vegetation were borne off to the distant steppes to be transferred into ornaments for arms and horse-gear.

In forming a conjecture of the value of the treasures of the Turkish Seraglio, the antiquary naturally and justly recalls to memory the magnificence of early history and the numerous spoliations of ancient nations that eventually fell into the grasp of the Greek and Roman Emperors. Let us follow briefly the historian among some of the fragments of history which relate to this subject, and seem to indicate that the treasures of the earth gathered during the last two thousand years in reality drifted in course of time and by the fortunes of war to the Greek Capitol. It is the sad epitome of man’s greatness and his insignificance. For the pillage which graced the triumphs of the Greek and Roman arms not only represented the peaceful industry of nations, but they were also often the memorials of the destruction of the earth’s fairest hopes.

Rome, in the height of her glory, displayed a magnificence worthy of the valor of her arms and the magnitude of her conquests. Her temples were profusely decorated with gems, and her nobles vied with each other in the possession of the rare and the beautiful. At times the Coliseum exhibited the wealth of the nation and the liberality of its rulers. The poet who describes the games of Carinus affirms that the porticos of the immense edifice were gilded, and the extensive circles which divided the ranks of spectators from each other were studded with a precious mosaic of beautiful stones,—

“Balteus in gemmis in lita portico aureo
Certatim radiant,” etc.

In the triumphs of Rome the spoils of the last conquest were not only displayed, but the accumulated riches of the Empire were ostentatiously exhibited to view at the same time.

To give the reader an idea of the magnificence of these celebrations, we will describe the triumphal entry into the eternal city by Aurelian when returning from the conquest of Palmyra and the nations situated along the great commercial highways to Asia. This was one of the greatest of the Roman triumphs, and spread a dazzling glory over the name of the conqueror. The pomp was opened by the stately procession of twenty enormous elephants, followed by four royal tigers and more than two hundred of the most curious animals from all parts of the world. Then came a fierce and haughty band of sixteen hundred gladiators, selected for their beauty, strength, and skill. The wealth of Asia followed this vanguard of brute strength. Displayed in charming arrangement or carelessly heaped in immense piles, the spectators witnessed the arms, ensigns, and a vast collection of the objects of value and luxury of many conquered nations. Among the articles of gold were exhibited the numerous crowns of Aurelian, together with the magnificent plate and wardrobe of the Syrian queen. Amidst this glittering array appeared the embassies of foreign and distant nations; and the ambassadors of Ethiopia, Arabia, Persia, India, and China, with their brilliant or picturesque costumes, added greatly to the interest and splendor of the scene. Following these came long trains of captives from various nations,—Goths, Vandals, Sarmatians, Gauls, Syrians, etc.,—with the ill-fated emperor, Tetricus, and his son, dressed in Gallic costume. But the most attractive figure of all to the Roman populace was the beauteous form of the celebrated queen of the Syrian deserts. Zenobia was on foot and alone. As if in mockery of human ambition, she preceded the magnificent chariot in which she once hoped to have entered Rome. Her elegant figure was shackled with solid chains of gold, while she tottered under the weight of the inestimable jewels which adorned her natural graces. In the rear appeared the still more sumptuous chariots of Odenatus and of the Persian monarch. The triumphal car which carried Aurelian was resplendent with gems, and was drawn by four stags.

One of the most magnificent exhibitions of extravagance and luxury of ancient times was displayed on the march of Tiridates and his Parthian nobles, when they went to Rome to receive the nominal crown from the hand of Nero. Four thousand selected Parthian cavalry, clothed in rich apparel, escorted the King. The entire expense of the journey, which lasted several months and amounted to more than thirty thousand dollars a day, was paid by the Romans. The triumphal procession traversed Asia Minor, crossed the Hellespont, passed through upper Greece, around the Adriatic, and then down the peninsula to Rome.

It was a great day for Rome when the Parthians approached its walls. The city was illuminated, and decorated with garlands and the movable wealth of the Empire. The Roman nobles were clad in white; and the splendid Pretorian guards, glittering with their arms and decorations, were drawn up in two lines stretching from the end of the Forum to the Rostra. Through these lines of steel, flanked by a vast assemblage of citizens, Tiridates and his proud nobles marched to the Rostra, and received from the hands of Nero the promised diadem. The Empire impoverished herself in this barbaric display and attempt to awe and charm her haughtiest foe. The accumulated spoils of three hundred triumphs at Rome formed a glittering prize to the minds of Alaric and his devoted Goths.

But six years before the capture of the city, Rome displayed her magnificence and her wealth in the ovation given to St. Melania on her return. The extent of the decoration of the temples and their shrines may be inferred from the quotations of the historians. Serena, the wife of the Roman general, Stilicho, on great occasions wore a magnificent necklace which she borrowed from the statue of Vesta. But the protection of the goddess could not protect the unfortunate woman from being strangled by the Romans during the siege by the Goths.

The fame of these treasures had spread all over the known world. And to the Goths the beauty of gems and the delights of luxuries were not entirely unknown. For, in previous times, they had invaded the coasts of the Euxine Sea and sacked many of the rich cities, like Trebizond. In the pillage of the city by the Goths, Alaric is said to have protected the consecrated plate and ornaments of the temples; but he undoubtedly confiscated the most valuable and notable of the treasures. The booty of the army was immense; and when the victorious soldiers took their departure the roads were incumbered with the rich and weighty spoils. The haughty victors, clad in the vestments of unexpected luxury, might have been seen resting by the wayside, waited on by their captives,—the sons and daughters of Roman senators,—drinking the wine of Italy in golden goblets, decorated with gems.

The treasures obtained by the Goths in the conquest and sack of Italy were borne away with them to Gaul. Besides these, the Gothic chieftains are said to have possessed many valuable gifts from other nations. The record of these wonderful works of art has been lost; but a few scraps of history, here and there, give glimpses of marvellous treasures. When the Franks pillaged the palace at Narbonne in France, in the sixth century, they found many curious and costly ornaments of gold.

But most of the treasures and choice works were undoubtedly carried along with the army into Spain, and deposited in the Gothic treasury at Toledo. These were eventually captured by the Saracens and sent to Damascus. Thus, by the singular fortunes of war, these remarkable and beautiful relics returned to the Holy Land whence some of them had been taken centuries before. Among these articles was the famous “Missorium,” or great dish for the service of the table, weighing five hundred pounds. It was formed of solid gold of exquisite workmanship, richly inlaid with gems, and was the pride of the Goths.

The wonderful emerald table, which has been so enthusiastically described by the Arabian writers, was also seized at the same time. The transparent top of this table was encircled with three rows of fine pearls, supported on three hundred and sixty-five feet, formed of gold and gems. This superb piece of workmanship was valued at five hundred thousand pieces of gold.

The marriage feast of Adolphus, the successor of Alaric, with Placidia, the daughter of the great Theodosius, was a memorable occasion in ancient history. It was celebrated at Narbonne, and displayed the prodigality and magnificence of the Goths. The ceremony was performed according to the lavish fashion of the Romans and the rude customs of the victors. Adolphus offered to his bride, in accordance with the manner of his nation, the spoils of her country. Fifty beautiful youths, attired in silken robes, presented the happy maiden with one hundred basins, one half of which were filled with gold, and the rest were heaped with gems of an inestimable price. Such was the inconstancy of fortune in those days, and such the cruelty of the times, that only a year after this grand event the beautiful woman, the daughter of a Roman emperor, and the wife of the Gothic chieftain, might have been seen marching on foot with a crowd of vulgar captives, in front of the horse of the assassin of her beloved husband. However, a few short days after the usurpation, the Gothic army, struck with pity and indignation at the sufferings of Placidia, attacked and slew her barbarous master.

Genseric, with his Moors and Vandals, fiercer in their pillage than the Goths of Alaric, ravaged Rome for fourteen days and nights. Everything of value, sacred or profane, was seized and borne away to the galleys of the invaders. Even the Empress Eudoxia was rudely stripped of her ornaments; and the holy relics, brought from Jerusalem by Titus and spared by Alaric, were taken from the temples and transferred to Carthage. One of the vessels, containing a part of the sacred utensils and other treasures, was shipwrecked on the same shore which a thousand years later swallowed up the wonderful and blood-stained emeralds which Cortez wrested from Mexico and carried with him when wrecked with the Admiral of Castile. The remainder were saved to swell the ponderous pile of booty when Carthage fell before the arms and genius of Belisarius. All these treasures, the collections of the Moor and the Vandal, were transported to the Bosphorus to enrich the city of the conquerors.

To the successful army and its general a triumph was decreed; and it was the first Byzantium had ever seen. The display on this historic occasion was worthy of the army and its hero. The wealth of nations was brought forth to heighten the splendor of the scene. Rich armor, golden thrones, chariots, varied forms of sculpture and furniture, statues, vases, and other objects of art, together with the holy relics of the Jewish Temple, were displayed in the procession.

But the grandest object of all was presented by the noble and majestic form of Belisarius, marching on foot at the head of a band of his bravest officers. Later in life, at the capture of Ravenna, Belisarius obtained the treasures of the Gothic army, which had been collected in that stronghold. These were transferred to the Byzantine palace; but the deserving general was deprived of his hard-won triumph, for Justinian had now become envious of the glory of his subject. The magnificent spectacle of the booty was not exhibited to the populace; but shown only to the flattering and subservient senate.

The results of the Persian conquests largely increased the number, variety, and value of the art and gem collections at Constantinople. The Persian monarch, Chosroes, to arrange and preserve the treasures gathered by rapine or tribute, constructed an elegant palace at Dastagherd beyond the Tigris. In this stronghold, protected in a hundred vaults, were deposited most of the gold, silver, gems, silks, aromatics, and other objects collected from Persia and other countries of Asia. All these fell into the bold hands of the Roman Emperor Heraclius; but a part of them, during an unlucky tempest, were lost in the waves of the Euxine Sea. In the capture of Tauris, Heraclius obtained what were supposed to have been the spoils of Crœsus, which had been transported by Cyrus from the citadel of Sardes.

Once only, before the coming of the Turk, was Constantinople, during its many centuries of varied prosperity and adversity, subjected to serious pillage. Hostile armies had again and again surged up to its almost impregnable walls, only to retire in discomfiture; and it seemed as though the grand old city was protected by some invisible agency from external violence. Internal dissension, however, was the bane of the capital, and was the true cause of the success of the Latins, and finally that of the Turks. The successful attack by the combined forces of the Latins and Venetians was one of the results of the Crusades. It took place in the commencement of the thirteenth century.

The city, however, remained under the Latin power for only fifty-seven years, when it was recaptured by a bold stroke of the Greeks. Injured by the pillage of the Latins, and many of its beautiful edifices destroyed by fire during the siege or subsequent occupation, the Greek capital not only lost its prestige of divine protection, but it has never recovered its former splendor. How much of the spoils were removed by the captors is a matter of conjecture. The historians of the Greeks and Latins—the spoiled and spoiler—undoubtedly exaggerate the injury of the conquest and the quantity of booty obtained.

Two of the Emperors, succeeding by usurpation, fled from the city with much treasure before it was finally captured. Even then one quarter of the accepted plunder was reserved for the elected ruler of Constantinople. And as to the remainder, which is said to have been divided equally between the French and Venetians, and valued at 11,125,000 marks of silver, or $11,000,000, there is no record extant of the articles. We know that the bronze horses of the Hippodrome were transferred to Saint Mark’s Palace, and the crown of thorns to the Sainte Chapelle at Paris. We also learn that many gems-the adamas, emerald, jacinth, ruby, sapphire—were among the spoils; but if the sack was complete, why did Venice years afterwards offer ten thousand ducats for the seamless vesture of the Redeemer, which was then among the sacred reliquaries of Constantinople? If these spoils were divided between the conquerors, how explain the fact recorded in French history, that the sacred relics sent to Paris and placed in the church erected to receive them were purchased? It is a matter of history that the crown of thorns, with the piece of the true cross, the antique gems, and other relics that were deposited in Sainte Chapelle, together with the construction of the building, cost Saint Louis of Baldwin, Emperor of Constantinople, a sum of money equal to 2,800,000 francs. This fact, coupled with the offer of the Venetians for the holy vestment, renders the accounts of the sack of the city still more obscure. The historian Yriarte declares that the only monuments of art deemed by the Venetians as worthy of transporting to their capital were the famous bronze horses. If this statement is correct, the Venetians must have been sadly deficient in taste, or history has wrongfully accused the founders of Constantinople of spoliation.

According to the early accounts, Constantine, in the reconstruction of Byzantium, despoiled the cities of Asia and Greece of their most valuable ornaments, the trophies of memorable wars, the objects of religious veneration, the most finished statues of the gods and heroes, of the sages and poets, of ancient times. The most celebrated works of the age of Pericles and Alexander were remorselessly seized by the Emperor and transferred to his capital to enhance its beauty and its renown. So many statues and architectural masterpieces had been transported to the Bosphorus that the historian Cedrenus ironically said, “Nothing in this great city was wanting except the souls of the illustrious men whom those admirable monuments were intended to represent.”

In the reign of Justinian the city was decorated by the best of living artists. In the construction of the public edifices, the richest materials were sought for and used with lavish hand. The bright hues, the primitive lustre, of many of the stones of which the buildings were composed were so remarkable as to form the theme of a poet. Distant countries were explored for choice materials. The costly marbles of Asia, Gaul, Greece, and Africa were transported to the Bosphorus. Among the rare stones used by the Greek architects, one may recognize in the ruins of the present day, the emerald-green marble of Laconia, the golden-hued of Mauritania, the black of Gaul, and the purple and red, with intersecting veins of sea-green, of Phrygia. The shrine which stood in the Mosque of Saint Sophia a thousand years ago or more must have been of marvellous beauty. The wealth and energy of the ancient world was expended upon it; and we can form some picture of it in our imagination from the fact that the Emperor Justinian, on beholding it after its completion, exclaimed, with outstretched arms, “Solomon, I have surpassed thee.”

The magnificence displayed by the wealthy houses of Byzantium in their internal arrangements must have been of an extraordinary character if we can judge correctly from the invectives of Chrysostom; and the utensils of silver and gold were in massiveness far beyond the prodigality of modern times. Ramusio, the Venetian historian, dazzles the reader with his glittering descriptions of the acquisitions of his countrymen. He mentions with preciseness the vases whose forms were as grotesque and varied as the caprice of man,—the murrhines Pompey won in his triumphs over Mithridates and Tigranes; chalices decked with gems or formed of turquoise, jasper, and amethyst; crowns of gold, studded with pearls; unnumbered emeralds, sapphires, topazes, jacinths, and other gems; also the matchless carbuncles which afterwards adorned the altar at Saint Mark’s, and which were believed by the superstitious to have the power of dissipating the darkness by their refulgent beams of light.

Constantinople, with its remaining works of art, again fell into the power of the Greeks and was retained by them until captured by the Turks. To describe the treasures of the Greek capital before its capture, and correctly estimate the character and value of the objects removed, and those secreted and again brought to light, will be a difficult task for some restless antiquary. We are, however, inclined to believe the Greeks successfully secreted many of their choicest gems. All through the pages of early and mediæval history, the reader will observe that by a strange caprice of fortune many of the richest and rarest works of art and nature passed into the possession of the rulers of Byzantium, Constantinople, or Stamboul. These three names, distinct in their meaning, yet relate to one and the same city, which, during its existence of more than a thousand years, passed successively under the sway of the Roman, the Greek, and the Turk. Stamboul is still the Mecca of the antiquary.

CHAPTER VII.
RUSSIAN REGALIA.

The empire of Russia has the most splendid collection of diamonds of any country in the world, with the exception, perhaps, of Persia. In the Kremlin at Moscow, and the Winter Palace at St. Petersburg, are preserved a multitude of gems of the highest perfection and beauty, and also many interesting ornaments formed or captured by the early rulers of Russia. Possessing many of the avenues of approach and trade with the countries of Central and Southern Asia, this country has long enjoyed excellent facilities for obtaining the gems from Upper India and Persia. The enormous quantity the treasury still possesses, added to the great number given away in past times by various sovereigns, naturally gives rise to the inquiry, whence this great abundance of precious stones came. We may say that this grand accumulation commenced in the earliest days of the Russian dynasty, and has been steadily increasing by direct intercourse with the gem-producing countries.

Many of the fine gems that fell into the hands of the Turks in their various conquests, have indirectly passed, by purchase or otherwise, into the possession of the Russians.

Some others recall the times of the incursions of the Cossacks of the tenth century, when the fearless hordes of the North marched even to the gates of Constantinople, and imposed menaces and ransoms upon the Greek emperors.

The crafty policy of the Russian dates back from those distant times. “Let us be content,” said the old Russian chieftain to his impetuous warriors complaining of treaties and tributes; “is it not better to obtain, without fighting, the gold, the silver, the silk, the precious stones of these people?”

The still earlier Scythians, with their light active horse, performed incredible journeys even into Illyricum and Thrace. The river Danube offered but a slight barrier to these fearless riders; and they boldly traversed flood, forest, and plain, sweeping, with impunity and menace, even up to the walls of Byzantium. They pillaged, without remorse, the rich towns and country palaces of the nobles, and returned to their forest wilds accompanied by thousands of captives, and laden with booty of immense value.

We are also reminded by the historian, that a part of Russia, especially Poland, was the Sarmatia of the ancients, whence issued the fearless swarms of invincible Huns and Goths and Sclavonians, who spread desolation at various times over nearly the whole of Europe. Although these fierce hordes seldom returned to their native plains, preferring the sunnier portions of the conquered countries, yet they did not abandon all communication with the land of their birth. Many of their incursions into the Roman provinces were rewarded with immense booty of captives, and a variety of plunder. For fifteen hundred years the customs of the Poles were but little changed. The love of nomadic life, of magnificence, of arms, dress, ornaments, was a predominating trait until a very recent period. The famous political assemblies of the Poles on the plain of Volo were among the grandest displays of barbaric splendors of any age; and sometimes one hundred thousand Poles were assembled in conclave.

The chivalry, the wealth of the country, was represented there. All the nobles and citizens of note attended, mounted upon the finest horses, and caparisoned and decorated in the most lavish manner. As the historian says, “The children of the desert strove to hide the furs and skins in which they were clothed, under chains of gold and the glitter of jewels. Their bonnets were composed of panther skin; plumes of eagles or herons surmounted them; on their front were the most splendid precious stones. Their robes of sable or ermine were bound with velvet or silver; their girdles studded with jewels; over all their furs were suspended chains of diamonds. One hand of each nobleman was without a glove; on it was the splendid ring on which the arms of his family were engraved,—the mark, as in ancient Rome, of the equestrian order,—another proof of the intimate connection between the race, the customs, the traditions of the Northern tribes, and the founders of the Eternal City.” But nothing in this rivalry of magnificence could equal the splendor of their arms: double poniards, double scimetars set with brilliants; bucklers of costly workmanship; battle-axes enriched in silver and glittering with emeralds and sapphires.

After reviewing the history of ancient and mediæval Poland, we are not surprised at the accumulation of gems in Russia, nor at the fact that some of the fine gems now in the modern cabinets of Europe were obtained from that country. For instance, the splendid green diamond of Dresden came from Warsaw.

The grand repository of the Empire is in the towers of the Kremlin; and here are preserved the sacred relics and the almost innumerable treasures of the Empire. In the galleries of this ancient castle of the Muscovites are gathered such an accumulation of wonders that the visitor is fairly dazzled, and is forcibly reminded of the tales of Eastern romance, of the munificence of the store-house of the Caliph Haroun-Al-Raschid, and the wells of Aboul Kasem.

Diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, topazes, and other gems, of large size and wondrous beauty, flash from every side of the apartment; and their profusion astonishes the mineralogist, who has been accustomed to regard these natural treasures as rare. It will be quite impossible to enumerate or explain properly the glittering arrangement of these marvellous works of art and nature. The sceptres, the crowns, the caskets, the reliquaries, the globes, thrones, and the insignia of religion and royalty collected here, fairly dazzle the eye by the reflections from the immense number of gems which decorate them. The scene reminds one of the prismatic effect of the rays of the morning or evening sun upon the numberless raindrops on the grass, after a shower has passed.

Here we shall find the crowns of the Muscovite Czars, together with the captured diadems and regalia of the countries that form a part of this vast realm. Among them may be seen, in all of their original quaintness and splendor, the crowns of Siberia, Novgorod, Kazan, Moscow, Poland, and the Crimea. To this imperial display we may expect to see added, at no distant day, the jewels of the Southern countries, which seem to be the inevitable heirlooms of the sagacious Cossack.

To describe correctly, and in a proper manner, the works of ancient, mediæval, and modern art collected here, would require a large volume by itself. We will, however, attempt to give a brief description of some of the beautiful crowns, which, though generally of rude workmanship, are yet studded with gems of an immense value, and are also objects of great historic interest.

Foremost of all, appears the magnificent diadem worn by the former Empress Anna Ivanovna, and which is, perhaps, one of the most splendid jewels of its kind in the world. It is well proportioned, and lightly formed of open gold work, incrusted with a vast number of exquisite gems, and among them 2,536 diamonds of great perfection. On its top, serving as a base to a slender cross of pearls, is placed the immense and wonderful ruby, which the Russian ambassador purchased at Pekin, at the price of 120,000 roubles.

The crown of Vladimir, which is used at the crowning of the heir to the throne, is composed of filigree gold-work, surmounted by a cross of plain gold, with a large pearl on each arm. It is surrounded at its base by a band of sable fur, and is ornamented with 4 fine emeralds, 2 rubies, and 25 pearls.

This crown was a gift from the Emperor Alexis Comnenus, and was brought with ceremony from Constantinople, by a Greek embassy, in the year 1116.

This circumstance recalls to memory the history and fate of the last of the Comnenuses, the self-styled Emperor of Trebizond, and who afforded so many themes of ridicule to the knights and troubadours of the fifteenth century.

In connection with our subject, it may be proper to give a sketch of the appearance of this potentate when he gave an audience to foreign ambassadors.

His dress was a tight gown of scarlet silk; around his neck, down the front of his gown, and around the bottom of it, were bands of gold about four inches wide; these were edged with pearls, and ornamented with large rubies and emeralds in rows down the centre of each band of gold. On his arms, above the elbows, were golden armlets, and around his wrists gold bracelets, all set with precious stones of various colors. His girdle was of the same pattern, about three inches wide, and had a hanging end about two feet long, which the Byzantine emperors, for some undiscovered reason, always carried over the left arm. In his right hand he bore a golden sceptre about three feet long, with a large cross at the top, set with enormous pearls. On his head he wore a close golden crown, of which the top was arranged in metal like a helmet. From this crown a fillet set with pearls hung down on each side of his face as far as his beard, which was of considerable length. Scarlet silk hose and golden sandals completed the Imperial costume, except two round ornaments of gold, each of the size of a plate, which were affixed to his robe on the outside of his thigh.

Such was the appearance of this vain ruler when he gave audience to the envoys of Mahomet II., the conqueror of Constantinople. The plain steel-clad warriors of the Sultan briefly said, “Wilt thou secure thy treasures and thy life by resigning thy kingdom; or wilt thou rather forfeit thy kingdom, thy treasures, and thy life?”

The sceptre of Vladimir is also preserved here. It is about three feet long, and contains among its ornaments 268 diamonds, 360 rubies, and 15 emeralds. The enamel covering of the rest of the surface, unadorned by the gems, represents religious subjects, painted and treated in the Byzantine style.

The tiara of Astrakhan is far more complex in its construction, and is very rich in barbaric taste. It is now known as the gold Imperial Crown of the First Order of the Czar; and is a tall, imposing structure, covered with brilliant gems. Among them are many fine rubies, emeralds, pearls, and an enormous sapphire of great value.

The crown of Kazan, captured in 1553 by John IV., is a very interesting specimen of mediæval workmanship, and shows the influence of Persian art in its arrangement. It is of gold filigree-work, intermixed with black, and is adorned with splendid rubies, turquoises, and pearls. On the summit is placed a very large ruby, surmounted with two pearls.

The ornament known as the diamond cap of the Czar is a singular combination of the rude and the beautiful in art. It is profusely garnished with 817 diamonds of the first water, besides 4 magnificent rubies and 8 emeralds. This is also surmounted with an enormous ruby, which sustains on its summit a solid Greek cross, composed of gems and pearls set in gold.

We have not space to describe the remaining diadems of ancient rulers, or those of recent times, nor the rich breast-crosses, the sceptres, and the various regalia used in the coronation of the Russian Emperors, but will mention the Grand Imperial Orb, before proceeding to the description of the ancient and curious thrones.

The Orb is an immense globe of gold, heavily chased and richly incrusted with large and beautiful gems. It is surmounted with a tall Greek cross, also studded with precious stones of the purest water and color. It is of Byzantine workmanship, as early as the tenth century, and is said to have served as model for several other ornaments of this character, made at Venice in later times. The upper portion of the exterior of the globe is arranged in four triangular spaces, whereon are enamelled in color scenes from the life of David. Among the gems which are set in enamelled gold are 58 diamonds, 89 rubies, 23 blue gems(?), 50 emeralds, and 38 pearls.

The three unique chairs used as thrones in the coronations of the rulers of Russia are objects of historical interest and are of great value intrinsically. The smallest of the three, designated as the Stool, is the most ancient of all, having been presented in 1605 by Shah Abbas of Persia to the Czar Boris Godunoff. It is completely covered with polished sheets of beaten gold decorated with pearls and precious stones. The second seat is in the form of a high-back chair of rude workmanship, and is intended for the reigning Empress, and is called the Golden Throne. Although its proportions are uncouth, a mine of wealth has been expended in its decorations, and it is inlaid with 1,500 rubies, 8,000 turquoises, 2 magnificent topazes, and 4 rare amethysts. The third chair, of rude construction, was made as early as 1660, and is intended for the Emperor, and designated as the Diamond Throne. It is literally a mass of sparkling diamonds; and every portion of the chair is aglow with brilliant colored flashes of the diamonds, so profusely is this gem used in its decoration. The rude and imperfect cutting of these beautiful stones indicates their Oriental origin as well as their antiquity.

The Priests’ Treasury in the Kremlin is a wonderful accumulation of wealth. We will attempt to describe but one of the articles to be seen there. In a golden casket studded with the finest gems may be seen some ancient holy relics given by one of the Greek Emperors of Constantinople. Among them there is a fragment of stone from the tomb of Christ, and a bit of wood from the cross. The elegance and richness of the casket will remind the antiquary of the receptacle of the tooth of Buddha, which was formerly preserved at Kandy, the capital of Ceylon.

This relic was kept in a golden casket incrusted with the finest gems. This was also encased in four other boxes, all of which were studded with precious stones of enormous value, and forming together a priceless reliquary to which none of the shrines of civilized countries could offer an equal in comparison, not excepting that of the famous Virgin of Loretto in Italy.

In the great hall devoted to the collection of arms and armor may be seen a great number of articles highly interesting to the antiquary and historian. Arms and armor of all periods from Europe and Asia are represented here,—the plain steel-clad vestments of the Crusader; the richly chased and inlaid coats of mail of the knights of mediæval times; the light defences of the Persian and Saracen horsemen, glittering with those gems which were supposed to possess the power of averting fatal missiles; the casques of the Circassian mountaineers, brilliant with barbaric decorations; scimetars, bucklers, scabbards, and a great variety of other arms, resplendent with the most beautiful of the rarest and most precious stones.

There is also a most costly and unique collection of saddles and horse-gear to be seen. These are mostly presents of Emperors of Constantinople in early times, and from Grand Turks and Persian Shahs of later periods. Some of these are of great value and contain gems of historic interest. Their decorations are profuse; and the bits, curbs, bridles, headstalls, and, in fact, all portions of the trappings that will admit of the setting of precious stones, are literally incrusted with splendid gems, forming stars, suns, and various ornaments of grotesque shapes.

In one of the rooms of the Winter Palace at St. Petersburg are deposited many of the jewels of the Empire, and especially those required in the court ceremonies.

Among them may be seen the beautiful crowns and coronets of the late Emperor and Empress. The crown of the Emperor is of magnificent workmanship, and dazzles the eye with the splendor of its gems. In outline it resembles the dome-formed patriarchal mitre, which was a favorite shape among the Byzantines. Upon the summit appears a cross formed of five beautiful diamonds, which is also supported by a large spinel ruby, polished, but not faceted. This ruby and cross are supported by a foliated arch composed of eleven great diamonds and rising from the back and front of the base of the crown. On either side of this central arch is attached a hoop formed of thirty-eight large and perfect pearls. The spaces on either side of these arches are filled with leaf-work and ornaments in silver, incrusted with diamonds underlaid with the richest purple velvet. The band which forms the base of the crown is of gold, and is ornamented with twenty-eight magnificent diamonds.

The coronet of the Empress is thought to be the most beautiful collection of diamonds ever presented to the view in a single ornament. It is composed of four very large diamonds of the purest water, and eighteen others of slightly smaller size, together with a multitude of lesser diamonds of exquisite water. The flash of these beautiful gems reminds the observer of a collection of rainbows.

Among the other regalia of this collection may be seen the most remarkable necklace of diamonds in Europe. In the links which form the chain are twenty-two huge brilliants of great value, and, as pendants to the connecting chain, fifteen other diamonds of surprising size appear, forming an ornament of great beauty.

In this room may also be seen the plume of Russia’s great general, Suvaroff. It is an aigrette composed entirely of diamonds of wonderful lustre, and was the gift of the Sultan of Turkey.

Among the curiosities preserved here are the Order of Saint Andrew, mounted with five pink diamonds; also two of the famous Siberian beryls,—one green, the other blue,—surrounded in their settings with diamonds.

In the museum of the Hermitage, adjoining the Winter Palace, may be seen one of the finest and largest collections of gems in the world. It is composed of choice selections from some of the most celebrated cabinets that have been formed in Europe during the past two centuries, and comprises the better portions of those known as the collection of the Duke of Orleans (Philippe Egalité), that of the famous Strozzi, and that of the Beverly, which had been formed under the direction of the learned antiquary Dutens. The cabinet is not only extremely valuable in its art treasures, in the form of engraved gems and cameos, ancient, mediæval, and modern, but it is a noble monument of the good taste and liberality of the sovereigns of Russia. The description of these alone would require a ponderous volume.

In another gallery in the same palace may be seen the plume of Prince Potemkin, glittering with gems of the purest ray, presented to him by the Sultan of Turkey; also the two magnificent bouquets of artificial flowers composed of the finest colored diamonds, topazes, pearls, sapphires, rubies, and other gems, which rival in their hues the most beautiful of the productions of the vegetable kingdom; the identical parrot which was carved from a single emerald, and given by King Pedro II. of Portugal, to his bride, the Princess of Savoy; together with a vast number of priceless objects of virtu of various ages, many of them profusely decorated with interesting and valuable gems. The Hermitage, like the Green Vaults at Dresden, is one of the jewel-boxes of the civilized world.

In the museum of the School of Mines at St. Petersburg may be seen the finest collection of the gems in their natural and rough condition in the world, not even excepting the magnificent collections of the British Museum, or that of the Jardin des Plantes in Paris. The glittering treasures of Siberia are here displayed in lavish profusion. Natural crystals of diamond, of chrysoberyl, of topaz, beryl, and emerald attest, by their beautiful forms, the great mineral wealth of that vast country. The crystals of emerald are enormous and exceed in size all others in the world. The topazes are unsurpassed in their beauty and variety of tints. The collection of beryls is truly wonderful, and contains specimens of exquisite color and of great value. They may be seen not only of green, blue, white, and yellow, but even pink, which is an exceedingly rare hue for this mineral. The cabinet of tourmalines is superb, and nobly illustrates the beauty and variety of colors and forms of that wonderful mineral.

In the arsenal of the Alexander Palace may be seen a curious and valuable collection of arms and armor of all ages, and among them many ornaments beautifully worked in precious stones. Prominent among them are the two sets of horse-gear which came as presents from the Sultan of Turkey. The first is a souvenir of the conclusion of that peace which was signed at Adrianople when the Cossacks had passed the barriers of the Balkan Mountains and almost clutched the long-coveted prize of Istamboul in their grasp. It is superb in its construction, with its mountings and stirrups of gold, and its velvet trappings studded with flashing diamonds. But the second saddle is even far superior in its ornaments and its effects to the first. It is indeed a glorious specimen of Persian handicraft and ornamentation, and worthy of one of the heroes of the Arabian Nights. It fairly glitters with the multitude of diamonds of which it is composed, and some of which are of great size and wondrous lustre. It is indeed a barbaric mine of wealth.

This costly present was given to the Czar by the Sultan after the fatal battle of Konieh, when the Porte supplicated Russia to send an auxiliary force to defend a tottering throne against the attacks of a rebellious vassal.

Many of the cathedrals, convents, and monasteries of Russia are richly endowed with gems and jewels of great beauty and value. In the Kazan Cathedral at St. Petersburg may be seen the miraculous image of the Virgin brought from Kazan in 1579. It is covered with gold, and incrusted with diamonds and other gems. The sacristy of the Monastery of Solovetsk is one of the richest in the realm, and is filled with jewels and gems which have been presented in times past by kings, princes, and nobles.

In the Cathedral of the Archangel Michael, in Moscow, there are some ancient reliquaries adorned with gems of remarkable beauty. The diamonds, however, are surpassed by the magnificent emeralds.

In the sacristy of the Holy Synod in Moscow are preserved some wonderful sacerdotal robes and ornaments. One of the sakkos of crimson velvet is so heavily laden with diamonds, rubies, pearls, emeralds, etc., that its weight amounts to fifty-four pounds. The great mitre is also so studded with gems, such as the finest diamonds, rubies, emeralds, pearls, and sapphires, that it weighs five and a half pounds. The decoration of these sacred objects has been made by lavish hands and from an abundance of the most costly materials.

The famous Convent of Troitza possesses rare and beautiful gems and jewels among its gifts and reliquaries, which are well worthy of examination by dilettanti. From a great variety of sources these riches have accumulated. The shrine has been famous for many centuries past; and czars, princes, boyars, and peasants have deposited their offerings both in ostentation as well as with the hope of divine dispensation.

Its treasury is indeed a colossal jewel-box, whose wealth must amount to many millions in value, and which rivals, if it does not surpass in richness, the famous shrine of Loretto in Italy. The variety of articles decorated with gems exhibited here is marvellous. Art has made use of the precious stones in her decorations with lavish hand. Some of the frames in which are set sacred pictures are literally composed of gems of the largest size and also costly in price. Even the robes of the Madonnas are spangled with diamonds, rubies, sapphires, topazes, and emeralds, forming the richest mosaics.

It is impossible, from the imperfect information we have received from travellers concerning this wonderful museum of ancient and mediæval art, to give an accurate account of its treasures; but we hope some of the learned antiquaries of Western Europe may be induced to examine them, and make known their history. Among the great numbers of engraved gems, skilled search may reveal some of the most beautiful forms of ancient art, and supply some of the missing links in glyptic history.

According to these vague accounts a volume might be written on the description of the armoires, among which are comprised Bibles, Gospels, liturgical books, bound with covers of silver gilt and incrusted with precious stones, such as the onyx, sardonyx, agate, chrysoprase, aqua-marinas, lapis lazuli, malachite, turquoise. The clasps of these volumes are made of gold or silver, in which antique cameos are set. Among the sacred utensils and relics are described chalices of gold belted with rows of diamonds, and a great variety of vessels richly ornamented; also crosses studded with beautiful emeralds and rubies; sapphire rings; vases and chandeliers of silver; dalmatics of brocade embroidered with flowers composed of gems, and with legends in old Sclavonic, written in pearls; enamelled censers; triptychs storied with countless figures. Besides these articles we have enumerated, the museum contains a great number of others, including images of saints and Madonnas richly decorated, masses of precious metals, and heaps of precious stones in their natural state. What a glorious field of study for the amateur and the historian is presented here!

Among the paragons possessed by the Crown is the diamond known as the Orloff, which derives its name from one of the counts of that celebrated family, who purchased it for the Empress Catherine. It is one of the finest gems in the world, and is the largest in Europe. It rivals in beauty the famous Regent of the French regalia, which it surpasses in size. The weight of this diamond is 194³⁄₄ karats, and it is exactly of the form of the famous diamond described by Tavernier as the Great Mogul. In shape it is ovoid, or rather, in gem nomenclature, of a high-crowned rose-pattern. It is possible that this gem is the long-lost Mogul. Were it not for the remarkable accuracy of the distinguished French traveller, we should at once pronounce the Orloff to be the missing Mogul. Hence the question arises, may not Tavernier have made an error in his calculation of weight? It is certainly very remarkable that two rare stones of such great weight, and such unusual form, should possess so great and so many degrees of resemblance. And it may be possible that the Mogul diamond is concealed in some of the obscure fastnesses of Persia, and may appear again to the world, like the crown of Chosroes, after a thousand years of concealment.

The Orloff disputes with the Regent the claim of being the finest known gem in the universe. Both have their ardent admirers. The Regent owes much of its fancied superiority to the regularity and perfection of its form, which is that of a perfect brilliant, and may therefore be regarded as the type of the style. The Orloff, likewise, may be selected as the perfected model of the form known as the rose-cut. Therefore, either gem may be considered as the perfection of the brilliant or the rose-style of cutting. The brilliant is certainly the most symmetrical of all the forms; but does it enable the gem to exhibit to a full degree its powers of refraction? It may exhibit the prismatic play of color in greater perfection; but does not the rose-cut project brighter beams of light in a more extensive proportion than the brilliant? Let the opticians decide.

The Orloff now adorns the Russian sceptre, being placed in the top, just under the golden eagle.

Concerning the history of the Orloff there is considerable obscurity, even in that which relates to the time and the manner in which it came into possession of the Russians. At all events, there is no doubt but it formed a part of the spoils of Delhi, and was brought to Persia, along with the Koh-i-noor and other gems, by the conqueror, Nadir Shah. Its subsequent history, however, is somewhat mixed up with other gems. Dutens relates a romantic story of its having formed one of the eyes of the great idol at Seringapatam, and having been stolen by a French deserter, who managed to be installed as a priest and attached to the temple. Pallas, however, gives a totally different version, which he is said to have derived from the son of the Armenian who sold the gem to the Russians. This Armenian purchased the diamond from one of the Afghan generals, who formerly served with Nadir, and who received it as his share of the booty. But so far as we can learn, the gem was brought to Europe by the Earl of Effingham, who obtained it when Governor General of India. It frequently changed owners before it fell into the possession of the Greek merchant who took it to St. Petersburg and sold it to Prince Orloff. The price said to have been paid for it is given at $450,000, besides an annuity of $20,000 and a patent of nobility.

The Shah is a remarkably irregular prism of slab of diamond, partially faceted by art. Tradition has associated with it adventures of a startling and bloody character.

It was one of the gems possessed by Nadir Shah, and at the time of his death was received as booty and secreted by one of the assassins. Long after the event, an Afghan visited an Armenian by the name of Shafras, who lived at Bassora with his two brothers, and offered him a large diamond, an emerald, a ruby of fabulous size, a sapphire of wonderful beauty, together with a hundred other stones of less value. The stranger asked an insignificant price for these valuable gems, but the Armenian was not at the time able to furnish the means of purchase, and entreated the Afghan to return at another time with his treasures. But suspicious of the good faith of the jeweller, the mountaineer departed and disappeared. Several years afterward the Armenian met, by chance, the Afghan at Bagdad, where the gems were sold to a Jew for 65,000 piastres. Shafras summoned his two brothers, and they assassinated the stranger and the Jew, and flung their bodies into the Euphrates. The brothers fled to the desert, and while attempting to divide their spoils fell into dispute. In the depths of night the elder brother slew his two companions in crime, and fled to Constantinople. From thence he passed to Holland, and informed several of the Courts of Europe of his treasures. Catherine is said to have invited him to Russia, but would not accede to his terms of purchase. The Armenian, while at St. Petersburg, was induced by some of the courtiers to lead a life of dissipation, with the view of ultimately obtaining his treasures. But, soon perceiving the intentions of his associates, he secretly quitted the country, and was heard of no more for ten years, when by accident it was discovered that he was living quietly at Astrakhan. New overtures were at once made to him by the Russians, but he would not consent to meet the negotiators, except at Smyrna. At this city the purchase was finally made, and the Shah passed into the possession of the Muscovites for an immense sum of money,—said to be $650,000.

Unfortunately for this romantic story, only the outlines of which we have here given, it is now reported that Chosroes, the son of Abbas Mirza, presented the gem to the Emperor of Russia. Another account states that it was purchased of Chosroes by the Russian Government. At all events, no matter what its true history may be since the death of Nadir, it is a gem of the most perfect purity of color and freedom from blemish. Upon one of its sides an inscription in the Persian language has been engraved by some lapidary of extraordinary patience. Its weight is ninety-five karats.

Many of the Russian nobles possess fine diamonds, which are not well known to the public. We know that the Princess Yassopouff owns the fine brilliant of forty karats called the Polar Star; but what has become of the fine gem of ninety karats, which was cut for Russia by the French lapidary Jarlet, at the close of the seventeenth century?

While we are speaking of lost gems, we will call the attention of the reader to the large pear-shaped diamond of 157¹⁄₄ karats, which Tavernier bought at Amadabad in India, and brought to Europe on his return. This gem also has disappeared from history, and thus far evaded all attempts for its recovery. The history of all the large and famous diamonds brought to Europe would form a most interesting chapter, if some tireless antiquary could be induced to take up the subject and clear away the obscure wanderings of some of them.

The history of Potemkin, as related by a recent writer, reveals an extravagance unequalled since the days of the Roman follies; and it reads in these sober times more like romance than reality. The Prince, when fully attired, wore a collar of the Order of Saint Alexander, which was the gift of the Empress, and profusely ornamented with diamonds of the value of 60,000 roubles. A laurel wreath, which he wore on state occasions, also the gift of Catherine, was beautifully wrought in gold, and set with superb emeralds and diamonds which were estimated as worth 150,000 roubles.

The picture presented by this bold favorite in his sunniest days, when, for instance, he assisted the Empress to alight from her carriage, surpasses the display of Prince Esterhazy in later times. Orloff was then dressed in a scarlet coat, over which hung a long cloak of gold lace extravagantly ornamented with precious stones of enormous value. In fact, his dress was completely covered with beautiful gems; and his hat was so heavily laden with precious stones, that an aide-de-camp carried it for him when not in use.

Catherine was not only passionately fond of belles-lettres and the arts, but she had a generous heart withal, as evinced by the numerous gifts she bestowed upon her friends. The value of the gems and the jewels she gave to her favorites exceeds almost the bounds of belief, and far surpasses the munificence of any of the sovereigns of history. The total estimate of the worth of these gifts amounts to the enormous sum of 88,820,000 roubles. We will enumerate some of them. To Zoritz she gave diamonds of the value of 200,000 roubles. To Plato Zouboff, gems worth 100,000 roubles. To Zawadoffsky, to Lanskoi, to Zermoloff, she presented caskets of diamonds of the value of 80,000 roubles each. Wasulitschikoff and Kozzakoff each received presents of the same precious stone, costing 60,000 and 50,000 roubles. The five brothers of the Orloff family, and especially Potemkin, received gifts amounting in value to many millions of roubles. To the famous house of Bariatinsky Catherine gave many beautiful gems which are still preserved among the treasures of the family. Among them is a splendid solitaire diamond with a pendant, which was given to one of the Princes at his baptism.

Some of these jewels are of unique patterns and workmanship, and of immense value. Among them is a necklace of solitaires, each stone as large as the end of the thumb, with large pear-shaped pendants attached. There is also a bracelet of rude Persian art, made of beaten gold, and set with uncut crystals of diamonds, thus indicating a very ancient origin, or singular caprice on the part of the maker.

There are still preserved among the princely families of Russia, as well as in the Royal casket, many diamonds yet in their rough and crystallized forms, or imperfectly cut in the Oriental and ancient manner.

The remarkable soldier, Suvaroff, although careless of his dress and his personal appearance, was passionately fond of jewels. And the allied sovereigns of Europe, learning of his love of the beautiful, sent him several superb gems, among which was a large diamond of great beauty, from the Empress Catherine.

Like Charles le Temeraire, the terrible Cossack carried his gem treasures with him during his campaigns; and he took infinite delight in examining their charms, in times of danger and fatigue. They were of various kinds and of great value; but the one he prized the most was the gift of the Czarina. This splendid gem he always reserved for the last look, after toying with the others; and seemed fascinated with the strange gleams of the prismatic display, as the stone was viewed in the dim and flickering light of the camp-fire.

What a picture is presented of the grim and fearless veteran, deriving a gleam of comfort from his treasures during that lonely bivouac on the summit of the high Alps, in Switzerland, on that fearful night in 1799, when the victorious French, under Lecourbe, forced the Tatar general, with his twenty-four thousand desperate soldiers, and with terrible losses, over the desolate and rarely trodden pass of the Kenzig Culm!

CHAPTER VIII.
FRENCH REGALIA.

Previous to the time of the French Revolution, and commencing from periods dating back beyond mediæval days, France had accumulated a casket of gems and jewels of extraordinary richness and value. The amateur may form an idea of their beauty and magnificence, from the famous report made to the French Assembly by M. Delattre in 1791. In this list there were enumerated with special care, 9,547 diamonds, 506 pearls, 230 rubies, 134 sapphires, 150 emeralds, 71 topazes, 3 Oriental amethysts, 8 Syrian garnets, and 8 other stones not designated.

The estimated value of these treasures, together with the bijou and mounted parures belonging to the Crown, amounted to nearly thirty million francs. From this carefully arranged inventory, we have made the following selection, which will be interesting to the reader at the present day, as not only showing the estimated worth of the gems at that time, but also describing some of the fine gems whose history has since been lost.

	Weight. k.	Value. fr.
1 A brilliant diamond called Le Regent	136¹⁴⁄₁₆	12,000,000
2 A diamond cut in facets, perfect in lustre and brilliancy, called Le Sancy	33¹²⁄₁₆	1,000,000
3 Diamond cut in facets	28⁶⁄₁₆	250,000
4 A brilliant diamond	26¹²⁄₁₆	150,000
5 A pear-shaped diamond, of a peach-blossom hue	24¹³⁄₁₆	200,000
6 A diamond called the Mirror of Portugal	21²⁄₁₆	250,000
7 Pear-shaped diamond, of a yellowish cast	20¹⁴⁄₁₆	65,000
8 Rose-colored diamond, with flaws	20¹²⁄₁₆	48,000
9 An olive-shaped diamond, clear	18¹³⁄₁₆	85,000
10 A brilliant, of a greenish cast, and flawed	18¹¹⁄₁₆	20,000
11 A pale wine-colored brilliant	18⁹⁄₁₆	75,000
12 A steel-colored brilliant	17⁷⁄₁₆	18,000
13 Brilliant, cloudy	17	50,000
14 The 10th Mazarin, cloudy	16	50,000
15 A brilliant, of peach-blossom hue	14¹⁴⁄₁₆	25,000
16 A fine white brilliant	14¹⁴⁄₁₆	150,000
17 A brilliant, of peach-blossom hue	14¹²⁄₁₆	30,000
18 Brilliant	13¹⁰⁄₁₆	60,000
19 A brilliant, of brownish hue	13⁸⁄₁₆	35,000
20 A brilliant, of yellowish hue	11¹⁰⁄₁₆	15,000
21 A brilliant, of brownish hue	11¹⁰⁄₁₆	10,000
22 Brilliant, of yellowish cast	11⁶⁄₁₆	15,000
23 Brilliant, of peach-blossom hue	11²⁄₁₆	10,000
24 Pale-blue brilliant	10⁷⁄₁₆	30,000
25 Brilliant, of brownish hue	10⁴⁄₁₆	25,000
26 White brilliant	10	30,000
27 15 brilliants (of unknown weight)	......	833,000
28 54 brilliants, each from	5 to 10	756,000
29 227 brilliants, each from	1 to 5	332,700
30 1,631 small diamonds, together	425	77,228
31 12 diamonds, rose-cut and flawed	84	82,700
Royal State Dress, White Parure.
32 12 brilliants, each from and 163 smaller ones	2 to 20	413,000
33 The Order of St. Esprit, 9 brilliants, each from, and 286 smaller ones	7 to 14	324,000
34 The Epaulette, composed of 12 brilliants, each	3 to 19	306,000
35 The Croix du Cordon, 6 large brilliants and 143 smaller diamonds	......	200,000
Colored Parure.
36 A rich sky-blue brilliant	67²⁄₁₆	3,000,000
37 Pale-blue brilliant	31¹²⁄₁₆	300,000
38 Croix du Cordon, 13 large brilliants, 362 smaller	......	10,000
39 Epaulette, 9 large brilliants, 197 smaller	......	47,000
40 Epée de diamonds, 2,189 rose-cut diamonds	400	329,075
41 Diamond buttons, large and small	552	294,851
42 Other diamonds of various qualities	......	315,000

This magnificent and matchless collection was mysteriously stolen in September, 1792, and many of the fine gems have not been recovered. Neither has time yet divulged the authors of this bold theft, nor explained clearly the motives that led to the act. The circumstances connected with this celebrated robbery are interesting although obscure. They are as follows:—

After the fearful and bloody scenes of the 10th of August and the 2d of September, fears were entertained by the Republican chiefs concerning the safety of the public treasures. Therefore the building which contained the gems was closed to the public; and the Commune of Paris, representing the domain of the State, placed its seals upon the apartments wherein were placed the crown, sceptre, the golden wreath left by Cardinal Richelieu to Louis XIII., and a great number of gems and bijou. On the morning of the 17th of September M. Sergent and two other Commissioners of the Police perceived that during the night thieves had entered the halls of the Garde Meuble by scaling the colonnade from the side of the Place Louis XV., and opening the windows on that side. They had broken the seals, picked the locks, and, after removing many of the inestimable treasures, had disappeared, without leaving a trace of their flight.

The city was thrown into consternation at the boldness of the act and the magnitude of the robbery. Active and untiring search was at once made, but not a trace of the plunder nor the least clew to the perpetrators could be obtained.

Not long after, however, an anonymous letter revealed the information that a part of the spoil was then secreted in a ditch beside one of the alleys of the Champs d’Elysées. Sergent, with his colleagues, hastened to the spot indicated, and found there the Regent diamond and the magnificent agate cup then known as the Chalice of Abbé Suger.

Search was thus stimulated to further exertions, but without avail and twelve years passed without affording the least clew to the robbers. At this time a forgery was committed upon the Bank of France, and several persons were arrested for the act. Among them was a veteran soldier who had formerly served in the Pandours, and who was called by his comrades “Baba.”

When arraigned before the court, Baba made the following singular confession after betraying his accomplices in the forgery: “This is not the first time,” he exclaimed in an excited manner, “that my confessions have been useful to society; and if you condemn me I shall implore the clemency of the Emperor. Without me Napoleon would not be on the throne, for it is to me alone the success of the battle of Marengo is due. I was one of the robbers of the Garde Meuble. I aided my accomplices to bury in the ditch in the Champs d’Elysées the Regent and the other objects which, being easily recognized, would have led to detection. Upon the consideration of a promise which has been perfectly kept, I revealed this hiding-place. The Regent was found; and, gentlemen of the court, you are not ignorant of the fact that the magnificent diamond was placed in the hands of the Dutch by the First Consul to procure the funds which were so much needed after the 18th Brumaire.”

Baba was nevertheless condemned to the galleys, but the sentence was not enforced, and shortly afterwards he was sent to the prison in the Bicêtre, where he remained until he died. Nothing further than this was ever made known publicly, but suspicions of complicity in the robbery were directed towards the Orleans family.

Napoleon, when crowned as Emperor, and with the wealth of Europe at his command, made great efforts to restore the National regalia to their former beauty and value. The various countries of Europe were ransacked for the lost gems; and it is stated that a number of them were recovered. Great numbers of other gems were also bought and added to the Regalia; so that in 1810 the inventory of the Crown exhibited a list of 37,393 precious stones.

The changes of the one hundred days and the Restoration left the National property untouched. Under the reigns of Louis XVIII. and Charles X. additions were made, and the casket contained 64,812 gems and precious stones of all kinds. The inventory of 1849 presented the same number of articles, with a total valuation of over twenty millions of francs, without estimating the value of the bijou.

There must have been a large augmentation during this time, for the present which Louis XVIII. ordered to be made deducted from the collection diamonds of the value of three quarters of a million of francs. This costly present was in the form of the Order of Saint Esprit and constructed of superb diamonds.

Of the robbery of 1792, the Sancy diamond and the unique blue one of sixty-seven karats have never been recovered. Since the inventory of 1810 two beautiful gems have also disappeared. One of these was the magnificent opal which Josephine wore, and which was known as the Burning of Troy. The other was the beautiful brilliant of thirty-four karats which was obtained by M. Elias for Napoleon. This was the much-loved gem which the Emperor is said to have carried with him on his person, and which was asserted to have been lost in the rout at Waterloo.

The magnificent blue diamond, which was regarded as one of the marvels of the mineral kingdom, has never been recovered. Its early history has also been lost, but the gem is believed to be the identical stone which Tavernier brought from India and sold to Louis XIV. At that time it was described as a gem of a beautiful violet hue, but of a bad form, being flat and thin. Its weight in this condition was 112³⁄₁₆ karats, which would probably afford a fine brilliant of the size of the missing stone, 67²⁄₁₆ karats. History has failed to trace the wanderings of this gem since its departure from the Louvre, but suspicion rests upon the superb blue diamond which was in the possession of the English banker, the late Mr. Hope. However, the English diamond weighs but 44¹⁄₂ karats. Therefore a loss of quite 22 karats was incurred in recutting the stone in order to escape detection.

The Regent diamond, which was found uninjured in the ditch of the Champs d’Elysées, is in reality the most beautiful diamond yet known in the world. It is not the largest, but it is the most perfect of all the paragons, being almost faultless in its transparency and purity, as well as in its exact and symmetrical form.

It derives its name from the fact that it was purchased and added to the French casket by the Regent of France. This magnificent gem was found in the diamond mines of Puteal, about one hundred and thirty-five miles from the city of Golconda. It weighed in its natural condition four hundred and ten karats, but during the process of cutting it was reduced to 136¹⁴⁄₁₆ karats. A Parsee merchant by the name of Jamcund, who was a famous collector of diamonds, obtained possession of the stone and brought it to Madras, where he sold it to the English Governor, William Pitt, for $60,000. Pitt brought the stone safely to London, and, after having had it cut, offered it for sale. The Royal House of England declined to invest in the gem; but after long negotiations the Duke of Orleans, Regent of France during the minority of Louis XV., purchased it in 1717 for the sum of 3,375,000 francs. Seventy-four years afterwards a commission of experts reckoned its value at 12,000,000 francs, and even this enormous sum is exceeded by the valuation of the present day.

Napoleon, after establishing his fortunes, redeemed the Regent from the Dutch bankers, and had it set in the handle of the sword of state. Since then it has been removed and so arranged in its setting as to be placed at will either in the crown or used separately.

To the historian this beautiful gem is singularly interesting, for it has indirectly exercised a mighty influence upon the destinies of Europe and the progress of civilization. It was of infinite aid to Napoleon after the 18th Brumaire; and probably without the help of the little glittering pebble as a collateral for the Dutch loan, the decisive battle of Marengo never would have been fought. And it is no less certain that William Pitt, England’s Premier, never would have been the leading statesman of Europe had not his grandfather acquired the diamond in India and established the prosperity of his family by its sale. Pitt was the master of European politics; and even after his life was crushed out by the defeat at Austerlitz, the heritage of his genius and his hate was apparent in every coalition, every blow, against Napoleon that finally culminated at Waterloo. Therefore, in reviewing the history of the Regent diamond, the philosopher might be tempted to say that it was to the same gem, by a singular fatality or caprice of fortune, the “Great Captain” indirectly owed his success and his downfall.

The jewels belonging to the Crown of France, as collected and restored by Napoleon, and increased by the good taste of the succeeding rulers of the country, are of great beauty and value. It is, indeed, one of the finest collections of Europe. The casket, at the present time, contains sixty perfect diamonds, varying in weight from 25 to 28 karats, besides the splendid and matchless Regent. The actual crown displays eight great diamonds of the purest water, weighing from 19 to 28 karats each, besides the Regent, which may be adapted at will.

During the Universal Exposition at Paris, in 1855, the jewels of the Crown were displayed to the public. Many of the gems were mounted for the occasion in new parures; and the arrangement presented one of the most charming exhibitions ever seen in civilized countries.

We will now turn to the history of one of the lost diamonds of the Crown, and relate the facts and hypotheses concerning it as fully as we have been able to collect them. They form, indeed, a perplexing theme.

The beautiful diamond inventoried as the Sancy, and of the weight of 33¹²⁄₁₆ karats and valued at 1,000,000 francs, was also stolen and never recovered. This gem has been associated with the fortunes of the redoubtable Burgundian warrior, Charles the Bold; and its history has done more to perpetuate his name than the record of all his misdeeds and his desperate battles. To prove, however, that this is the identical gem lost to the Swiss will be a difficult task; for the antiquaries have unearthed more Sancy diamonds than there were “Richmonds in the field.” The name of Sancy has, indeed, become famous by embracing in one story the fortunes of three distinct gems.

The erudite King has patiently traced out the traditions connected with the name of Sancy, and appears to prove that three stories instead of one are included in the history of Baron Sancy. But the stone that was stolen from the French casket in 1792 is inventoried at the weight of 33¹²⁄₁₆ karats, while the gem that has lately gone back to India, and is supposed to be the stolen gem, weighs quite 54 karats. Here is a new mystery for the antiquaries to clear away; or did Delattre and his associates, who made out this inventory with exceeding care, write 33 instead of 53?

The histories of these diamonds are so interesting that we will attempt to repeat them here, following, in part, the views of Mr. King. Not long after the invention, by Berquen, of diamond-cutting by the process of abrasion, Charles the Bold, then in the full blaze of martial glory, submitted to him three large rough diamonds. The native of Bruges succeeded so well in polishing them, that Charles presented him with the princely sum of 3,000 ducats.

One of these gems Charles gave to Pope Sextus IV., and it was mounted in the Tiara, where it is said to remain. The second was presented to Louis XI. of France; while the third was reserved by the Burgundian hero, and set in a grotesque manner to be worn as a personal ornament.

This jewel, of true barbaric design, was formed of a triangular shape, with the newly cut diamond in the centre. This diamond was ⁵⁄₈ of an inch in its widest diameter, and was shaped as a pyramid, with the apex cut into a four-rayed star in relief. Around the gem were set three large Balais rubies and four magnificent pearls, each more than half an inch in diameter.

One of the Fugger family, in 1555, made a careful drawing of the jewel, with a written description of it, and these were afterwards published by Lambeccius in his Bibliotheca Cæsarea; so there can be no doubt about the appearance of the original diamond of Charles the Bold in its early days.

When the Duke led his band of freebooters into Switzerland on his long-projected foray, he took most of his gems along with him, not dreaming of disaster, and probably loving to view his treasures even amid the hardships of a campaign. Rough soldiers are sometimes as fond of the beautiful in art and nature as more delicate and refined organizations; and Charles the Bold and Suvaroff are not the only examples.

The terrific onslaught of the Swiss at Grandson crushed the Burgundian ranks so quickly that Charles had only time to escape with his sword, leaving all his cherished treasures in the hands of the dauntless mountaineers.

In the sack of the camp which speedily followed the rout, a soldier found the golden box in which the famous pendant was kept, but regarding the jewel as a gaudy and worthless bauble, he tossed it away under a wagon, and retained the box only. Shortly afterwards he began to suspect that the contents of so beautiful a box must have some relative value, and returning to the place he recovered the despised jewel. He did not long retain his treasure, but sold it to a priest for one florin. The priest also did not appear to have a high regard for his purchase, for he disposed of it to the magistrates of his own canton for three francs.

When it became known that the Bernese Government had possession of the Duke’s famous jewels, Jacob Fugger, one of the members of the celebrated Nuremberg family, went to Bern and negotiated for their purchase. The famous pendant, together with the Duke’s cap, which was made of silk covered with pearls and Balais rubies, and a plume case set with diamonds, pearls, and Balais rubies, were bought for the sum of 47,000 francs. Fugger retained the pendant in his possession at Nuremberg for many years, indulging in the hope, it has been said, that the Duke’s great-grandson, the Emperor Charles V., would purchase it as a family relic. When the celebrated capitalist died the ornament was still in his possession; but his great-nephew, who inherited the jewel, sold it to Henry VIII. of England. After the death of this monarch, his daughter presented the diamond to her bridegroom; and thus, by a remarkable coincidence, and after an absence of seventy-six years, the royal gem is again restored to the rightful heir of its original owner. So far the history of Sancy No. 1 can be clearly traced.

Now for the stories relating to the Sancy diamond No. 2. But, before proceeding further in this interesting and misty search, we will explain the history of the nobleman who has inseparably connected his name with so many gems.

Nicolas Harlai, Seigneur de Sancy, was of French descent, and the treasurer and intimate friend of King Henry IV. He had filled several positions of high responsibility, and served as ambassador to several of the Courts of Europe. He was also known as a man of culture, a lover of the fine arts, and an amateur in gems.

In the year 1589, Baron Sancy is said to have obtained a large diamond from the Pretender to the Crown of Portugal, as security for a loan of one hundred thousand livres. The antiquaries have thus far failed to ascertain whence this gem was obtained; but it cannot be supposed that it was the identical jewel Philip II. of Spain had received from the English Princess, for the Spaniard was then the bitterest foe of Don Antonio. Furthermore, Philip, when dying, in 1598, ten years later than the above-mentioned period, gave to the Infanta a diamond of great beauty saying that it once belonged to Queen Mary of England. At all events, it is quite certain that the French Baron had in his hands a large and valuable diamond.

Not long after this acquisition, Henry IV. wished to engage the services of a select body of Swiss soldiers, to serve in his army; and as security for the pay of these hirelings, he sent the gem by a trusty servant to Harlai, who was then in Switzerland. The faithful valet, whilst on his way to Bern, was beset by robbers in the forests that conceal the entrance to the pass of the Dôle, one of the mountains of the Jura. He managed to swallow the diamond without being perceived by the bandits, before he was stripped and assassinated.

The Baron, on learning the fate of his envoy, mistrusted that he had resorted to this expedient of concealing his treasure. He therefore sent a party of soldiers to the place, disinterred the body, and recovered the gem. It was immediately placed in the hands of the Jews of Metz, as security for a large sum of money; and it is also related that the gem was never redeemed. Here ends the history of the second Sancy; and no further account of it can be found.

Concerning the history of Sancy No. 3, it is related that when Baron Sancy returned from Constantinople, where he had been as ambassador, he exhibited a large and beautiful diamond, which he had acquired for the sum of $120,000. This statement is somewhat obscure, from the fact that the ambassador was not Harlai de Sancy, but his son Achille, who was also sent on various missions by Richelieu during the years 1626 to 1635. However, it is certain that a new diamond was imported into France by one of the Sancys, and that it was a remarkable gem. It was described as being of the form of an almond, faceted all over its surface with small facets, after the manner practised in India. The weight of this gem has been variously stated; and these conflicting statements have served to increase the mystery concerning the Sancy gems. The weight of the diamond has been given as high as one hundred and twenty-six karats; but Delisle assured Dutens that he saw M. Jacquemin, the Crown jeweller, weigh the gem, and that it did not exceed fifty-four karats. Nevertheless, the famous inventory of the French gems in 1792 gives 33¹²⁄₁₆ karats as the true weight of the famous Sancy diamond. How shall we explain this wide discrepancy?

Forty-two years after the death of the Baron, the diamond passed into the hands of Henrietta Maria, the queen-dowager of England, and subsequently into the possession of James II. The unfortunate king, while in exile, sold the gem to Louis IV. for the sum of $125,000; and here its history ends.

During the latter part of the seventeenth century, Robert de Berquen, a descendant of the famous lapidary, wrote his “Merveilles des Indes,” and therein he describes the diamond brought from India by Baron Sancy, as then in possession of the Queen of England, and being almond-like in form, faceted on both sides, and of fifty-four karats in weight. This account agrees with those of the French jewellers, and serves to connect the history of the gem up to this period.

Not many years after the bold robbery of 1792, a large diamond was acquired, by some mysterious means, by the widow of Charles IV. of Spain, who gave it to the notorious Prince of Peace Godoy. In 1838, Princess Paul Demidoff is said to have purchased it for half a million of roubles; and it is also certain that the Demidoff family sold it in 1865, to the Parsee millionnaire, Sir Jansetjee Jejeebhoy of Bombay, for $100,000.

Now the question arises, which was the true Sancy? And to settle the inquiry satisfactorily, will be a difficult task. From all these accounts, the reader may infer that there are three distinct diamonds included under the history of Sancy. The first is the diamond of the Duke of Burgundy, weighing, from its description, about thirty-three karats, and of a well-marked form. This gem is clearly traced to Philip II. of Spain. The second, which was of unknown weight, was last noticed in the hands of the Jews at Metz. The third was of the form of a brilliolette, and of fifty-four karats weight, and has lately returned to the land of its birth, with the honors of the name of Sancy. Which of these gems deserves the name of the Sancy diamond?

Madame de Pompadour, in the bright days of her prosperity, possessed some rare gems, but we can learn but little concerning them. Her will indicates that the beautiful ring containing white and rose-colored diamonds was given to the Duke de Goutaud, and also that the rare diamond of an aqua marine tint went to the Duke de Choiseul.

After having referred to the political importance of the Regent diamond, it may be proper for us to briefly mention the famous affair of the diamond necklace, which unjustly cast a stain upon the prestige of royalty in France, and ultimately exerted a certain influence, among other causes, that led to the downfall of the monarchy, and the fearful scenes that followed. The details of this daring scheme read more like romance than reality; yet they are well substantiated in history.

It appears that Böhmer, a jeweller of Paris, had collected, in 1784, a large number of beautiful diamonds, with which he formed a magnificent necklace valued at 1,600,000 francs. The jewel had been offered to the Queen Marie Antoinette; but she had declined the purchase as beyond her means at the time. Her regrets at her inability to obtain the splendid decoration reached the ears of Prince Cardinal de Rohan, who was then living at Paris, in disgrace, for having divulged some court secrets while he was ambassador at Vienna. The Prince was not only handsome and conceited, but he was notorious for his gallantry and his follies. Unfortunately for himself and the court, he sought at this time to regain the favor of the Queen, and made it the grand object of his life.

He had among his intimate acquaintances a bold, dashing woman by the name of Madame de la Motte, who pretended to be a countess of the family of Valois. She had married a man by the name of La Motte, who was intimate with the notorious quacks Villette and Cagliostro, who were then in the zenith of their fame. The Countess was well known in Paris as a woman of immorality and deeply versed in the arts of intrigue.

She became acquainted with the facts of the Queen’s admiration for the necklace and the infatuation of Rohan for the Queen; and upon these she arranged her scheme for duping the Prince and obtaining possession of the property. She soon won the confidence of Rohan, and represented to him the Queen’s intense longing for the necklace, and the favor he would gain in loaning the means which would enable her to obtain the coveted jewel and pay for it at her leisure. She promised, furthermore, through the aid of Cagliostro, to obtain an interview with the Queen on this subject. The promised interview took place one night in August, 1784, in the garden of Versailles; but the Queen was represented by a low character by the name of D’Oliva, who was almost a counterpart of Marie Antoinette.

Rohan was completely deceived, and agreed to purchase the necklace; which he did not long after, giving his notes for half-yearly payments, and receiving as security a bond from the pretended Queen, which, however, was forged by La Motte’s husband. The Prince Cardinal then intrusted the jewel to the Countess for conveyance to the Queen; but she passed it over to her husband, who lost no time in hurrying to London, where he immediately converted its gems into money. The Countess, however, did not hasten to join her husband, but remained at Paris, rejoicing in her audacity and good fortune, and with the hope of plucking more feathers from her princely victim. Nearly a year passed away before the secret was discovered.

Böhmer, anxious for his pay, approached the King; and the fraud was at once discovered. The Cardinal Prince was arrested just as he was about to perform mass before the court, and sent to the Bastile. After a short imprisonment, he was tried by a court of justice, but acquitted of criminal offence. However, he was sent in disgrace to reside at an abbey of his in Auvergne. Madame la Motte paid dearly for her crime and her dalliance in Paris after the prize had been secured, for she was sentenced to be branded on the shoulders, scourged in public, and condemned to perpetual imprisonment. She bore her trials with fortitude, and had the good fortune to escape from her prison in less than a year after her sentence. She joined her husband in London, and there published a bitter pamphlet against the French Court, and especially the Queen. It is generally supposed that the Countess died in London in 1791, either from a fever or the result of an accident caused by a drunken debauch. But a startling story comes from Russia, giving another account of the last moments of this celebrated adventuress.

It appears that the Emperor Alexander, disgusted with the conduct of three lady reformers who attempted to establish a revolution in religious opinion at St. Petersburg, banished them to the Crimea. They were Princess Galitzin, Madame de Krudener, and a mysterious personage who went by the name of Countess Gauchin. After death, which occurred during her banishment to the Crimea, the strange Countess proved to be the notorious De la Motte, who many years before had been publicly branded on the Place de la Grève in Paris.

It would appear from statements in mediæval history that necklaces were not much known in France, or at least were not in fashion, until the times of Charles VIII. For one of the earliest known in that country was that given by the above-named monarch to the beautiful Agnes Sorel. The uncut gems, which were of great beauty and value, weighed heavily upon the delicate neck and bosom of the fair creature; and she complained of it to her lover as being an instrument of torture as well as a decoration. The King, fascinated with the charming effect of the gems, together with the natural entrancing beauty of the maiden, begged her to wear it, saying, with a supplicating smile, “One might surely bear some little inconvenience to please those we love.”

The late Madame Thiers possessed a rare jewel, which came to her by inheritance, and which she wisely bequeathed to the Louvre collection. This jewel is a necklace of precious stones of the sixteenth century workmanship, and is regarded as without a rival in Europe except among the regalia preserved at St. Petersburg.

There are a great many diamonds owned in France among the nobility, the landed proprietors, and the successful merchants. Paris has been for a long time the chief market in the world for the sale of the gem; and most of the stones cut at Amsterdam find their way, primarily, to the Parisian bazaars. Many of these are taken as securities by the rich; but the most of them are absorbed by the requirements of fashion and the love of display.

Adventurers, during the tide of success, prefer to invest their gains in gems, and especially diamonds, rather than in lands or bonds. There is a twofold reason for this preference. Great wealth can be concealed in a handful of gems which can be easily transported; and the glitter of the stones adds vastly to the fascinations of the investment. Disastrous wars and commercial panics generally betray hoards of this description; and new sources of the precious stones are thus opened to commerce. It is reported that the Bonaparte family, since the disaster at Sedan, have thrown upon the market diamonds to the value of several millions of dollars.

CHAPTER IX.
THE REGALIA AND OTHER GEMS OF ENGLAND.

The casket of gems belonging to the English Crown is not of ancient date, for the followers of Cromwell—iconoclasts and economists—ordered all the ancient regalia to be sold. However, some of the finest of the gems were recovered not long after, and were used in the decorations of the coronation of Charles II.

The present crown of England was made by English artisans, in 1838, with gems taken from old diadems and others bought by Victoria. It is described by Professor Tennant as follows:—

“The imperial state crown of Her Majesty, Queen Victoria, was made in the year 1838, by Messrs. Rundell and Bridge, with jewels taken from old crowns, and others furnished by command of Her Majesty. It consists of diamonds, pearls, rubies, sapphires, and emeralds, set in silver and gold; it has a crimson-velvet cap with ermine border, and is lined with white silk. Its gross weight is 39 oz. 5 dwts. Troy.

“The lower part of the band above the ermine border consists of a row of 129 pearls; and the upper part of the band, of a row of 112 pearls; between which, in the front of the crown, is a large sapphire [partly drilled] purchased for the crown by His Majesty, King George IV. At the back is a sapphire of smaller size and 6 other sapphires, 3 on each side, between which are 8 emeralds. Above and below the 7 sapphires are 14 diamonds, and around the 8 emeralds 128 diamonds. Between the emeralds and sapphires are 16 trefoil ornaments containing 160 diamonds. Above the band are 8 sapphires surmounted by 8 diamonds, between which are 8 festoons, consisting of 148 diamonds. In the front of the crown, and in the centre of a diamond Maltese cross, is the famous ruby said to have been given to Edward, Prince of Wales, the Black Prince, by Don Pedro, King of Castile, after the battle of Najara, near Vittoria, A.D. 1367. This ruby was worn in the helmet of Henry V. at the battle of Agincourt, A.D. 1415. It is pierced quite through, after the Eastern custom, the upper part of the piercing being filled up by a small ruby. Around this ruby, to form the cross, are 75 brilliant-diamonds. Three other Maltese crosses, forming the two sides and back of the crown, have emerald centres, and contain respectively 132, 124, and 130 brilliant-diamonds. Between the 4 Maltese crosses are 4 ornaments, in the form of French fleurs de lis, with 4 rubies in their centres, and surrounded by rose-diamonds, containing respectively, 84, 86, 86, 87 rose-diamonds. From the Maltese crosses issue 4 imperial arches composed of oak-leaves and acorns; the leaves containing 728 rose, table, and brilliant diamonds; 32 pearls forming the acorns, set in cups, containing 54 rose-diamonds and 1 table-diamond. The total number of diamonds in the arches and acorns is 108 brilliant, 116 table, and 559 rose diamonds. From the upper part of the arches are suspended 4 large pendent pear-shaped pearls with rose-diamond cups, containing 12 rose-diamonds, and stems, containing 24 very small rose-diamonds. Above the arch stands the Mound, containing in the lower hemisphere 304 brilliants, and in the upper 244 brilliants; the zone and arc being composed of 33 rose-diamonds. The cross on the summit has a rose-cut sapphire in the centre, surrounded by 4 large brilliants and 108 smaller brilliants.”

The value of this beautiful ornament has been estimated by Barbot, the French jeweller, at the sum of $600,000, which, however, is probably very far below its real value.

The great prize and boast of the English treasures is the diamond called the Koh-i-noor, one of the spoils of the East India loot.

From the many descriptions given of it and its real and supposed history, it is better known to the English reader than any other gem; yet there are in Europe several diamonds of greater size and perfection, and a number of gems of greater beauty, and certainly of a higher value. The Koh-i-noor is said to have been discovered in the mine of Gani, near Golconda, about the middle of the sixteenth century. It is thought by some to be a portion of the Great Mogul diamond; but of the correctness of this view there is considerable doubt.

The form in which it was found by the English at the time of capture certainly conveys the idea that it may have been cleft from a larger specimen; but, according to Tavernier, the Great Mogul was ground down and not rifted by means of its cleavage planes at all. At all events, the gem, when it reached England, weighed one hundred and eighty-six karats, and its sides were polished and faceted in the Oriental manner, without regard to a symmetrical form. In this condition it was uncouth, it is true, but it was supposed to be the famous Koh-i-noor, “the mountain of light,” of Eastern romance and history. Now, in its new shape, it is no longer one of the giants of its species, and the prestige which the Hindoos bestowed upon it has also vanished. The recutting of this gem, and the attempt to reduce its irregular form into the shape of a brilliant, was most unfortunate. It is now only a brilliant in name, and it is far too thin in substance to exhibit the beautiful and natural refractive powers of the mineral.

In reality, the form of the brilliant should be cut according to mathematical laws; and its depth and breadth must be of a certain fixed ratio to call forth the natural brilliancy and prismatic display of the stone. This relative degree of form and its wonderful results is well exemplified in the gems cut by Ralph Potter at the commencement of this century, who was, without doubt, the best diamond-cutter the world has seen. It is also laid down as a mathematical problem in the scale which Jeffries has prepared.

The Koh-i-noor, before cutting, weighed one hundred and eighty-six karats; and was the second diamond in Europe. It is now reduced to 102¹⁄₄ karats, with its splendors but little increased; and is reckoned as the fifth in size among the European diamonds; and, to our view, is inferior in value to many of the diamonds of less size, and especially the green diamond of Dresden, or the blue of the Hope collection. In fact, it is far exceeded in beauty and splendor by the imitations of art. The prestige has been injured, if not destroyed, by cutting; and its position among the great gems of the world reduced to a comparatively low degree, notwithstanding its great weight.

No amateur will say that the gem has gained any advantage in cutting, when he sums up the arguments in favor of and against the operation. He will not say the Koh-i-noor, exhibited in the London exhibition, was superior in all respects to the time-honored gem displayed among the crown jewels of the Tower of London a few years before. In reality, its appearance in the Crystal Palace was inferior to that of its glass models; and a comparison of its form with the examples offered by Jeffries will at once show its imperfections.

In its spread, as compared with that of a properly proportioned one-hundred-karat brilliant, it is quite one third too large; or, in plainer language, it is now a badly shaped stone, and cannot display its latent splendors unless surrounded by a great number of wax candles.

A comparison with the outlines of the Regent will at once show the want of harmony in its shape so far as development of brilliancy and prismatic display are concerned; and to obtain the display of these properties, without which the diamond is not much better than common limpid quartz, the form of the gem must be invariably of a certain size and depth. A lustreless mass of diamond, no matter how large it may be, is not a choice example of the mineral, in comparison with a smaller stone, radiant with its natural, or rather developed, beauties. Size alone, without special excellence, brings no charm with it, but rather places it among mineralogical curiosities. Therefore, we regret exceedingly the recent cutting of the Koh-i-noor, which has injured its prestige, and reduced its value incomparably.

Had the lapidaries adopted the form of the Sancy, that is, the shape of the almond, with small facets all over it, a far greater brilliancy would have been obtained. Such is the opinion of Babinet and other connoisseurs, who are able to judge on this subject. The Koh-i-noor, before cutting, was submitted by Prince Albert to the examination of several eminent men, amongst whom was Sir David Brewster; and a variety of opinions were expressed upon the subject. It is generally believed that ideas of fashion directed the shape of the stone to be adopted; and that if its form had been left to Coster, the model of the brilliolette would have been copied, and but little of the stone sacrificed in the cutting. However, it is too late to lament the accident or the error; but we hope that the experience acquired will preserve other specimens for the admiration of art, although it availed nought in the case of the Star of the South, another stone admirably adapted for the exhibition of the beauty of the brilliolette model. This form, with numerous small facets, in both instances would have given more luminous points, and therefore produced more splendid effects.

Babinet properly exclaims against the mode of cutting the large gems with large facets, as thereby much of the glory of the gem is lost. Had the Regent, even, been cut with smaller and more numerous facets, its splendors would have been greater. As we have previously stated, the most vivid play of light and color is exhibited in diamonds of about ten karats or less; we may, perhaps, attribute the difference to the violation of some law in optics, as well as to the difference in the laminæ or substance of the larger stones.

Babinet, in defence of his remarks on this interesting subject, states that the beautiful rainbow hues are produced by the light entering the upper surfaces of the gem, and, being reflected backwards from the bottom surfaces, is then refracted, after traversing the side facets. The white light is then decomposed into every variety of hue, the perfection of which depends upon the condition of reflection and refraction. If the facets are too large and the light too voluminous there is danger of neutralization of these colors, and that white light be reproduced.

We doubt very much if this historic gem has been known to history for more than five hundred years. If it is, as it has been alleged, a part of the Great Mogul, its appearance among mankind dates from 1550. Had it been known in the times when Timour so mercilessly attacked India, it could hardly have escaped the rapacity of the Tatar. And the history of this conquest, in the latter part of the fourteenth century, leads us to believe that all, or nearly all, of the great diamonds of Bengal have been discovered since that time. Had this gem been added to the Mogul treasury at Delhi in 1304, from the conquest of Malwa by Ala-ud-deen, it probably would have been known to Timour. The last Tatar invasion, in 1736, under Nadir Shah, found the gem set in the turban of the Great Mogul, and it was carried away to Khorasan by the victorious host, together with all the fabulous wealth which had been garnered up during nearly four centuries of prosperity. From Nadir it was wrested by assassination, and passed from ruler to ruler, with strange vicissitudes, until the Sikh power succumbed to the arms of England; when it passed, in 1850, with other treasures, from the stronghold of Lahore to the jewel-chamber of Windsor Castle.

Ill fortune has always attended the possession of this gem, it is said; and certainly the reduction of the stone in the blind attempt to improve its brilliancy may be classed in this category. The Hindoos have always maintained that it inevitably brought ruin to its possessor; and surely, the history of the Mogul Empire, the reign of Nadir Shah, its conqueror, the Dooranee dynasty, and the rule of the Sikhs give strength to the plausibility of the tradition. In the chapter on the gems of Asia we shall again refer to this stone.

England has had the opportunity, during her Indian conquests, of collecting the most magnificent parure of gems the world has seen. The pride of the French Crown, the matchless Regent, was brought to London by the English Governor, Pitt, and offered to the Royal House; the great Orloff, the boast of the Russian regalia, was brought from India by an Englishman, Earl Effingham; and many other fine diamonds and gems from Hindostan have been brought within the reach of the English Crown before being offered elsewhere for disposition. The neglect to secure these beautiful and matchless treasures is inexcusable even in a commercial view, for a gem paragon is “an empire made portable.”

Among the diamonds brought from India by Englishmen, the Pigott and the Nassac deserve some mention.

The Pigott was a splendid gem of 47¹⁄₂ karats, and derived its name from its importer. In 1801 it was placed in a lottery in London, and valued at $150,000. The lucky drawer of the prize was content to part with it for $30,000 to an English jeweller, who afterwards sold it to Ali Pacha of Egypt. The Egyptian prince conceived a strange attachment to the gem. He did not display it among the ornaments on his person; but concealed it in a silken bag which he attached to his girdle. The story goes that when Ali was mortally wounded by Reschid Pacha he gave orders to have his favorite wife, Vasilika, strangled, and also commanded Captain D’Anglas to crush the diamond in his presence. A single blow of the hammer crushed to atoms this beautiful gem, which was really one of the finest in Europe on account of the perfection of its form and the absolute purity of its water. The model alone remains. The fascinating Vasilika by some means managed to escape the sentence of death.

The Nassac diamond was brought from India by the Marquis of Hastings, and formed a part of the Deccan booty. After passing through several ownerships it was finally purchased by the Marquis of Westminster for about fifty thousand dollars. It has since been recut into a triangular form, and its original weight reduced from eighty-nine to about seventy-eight karats. In its new form it has gained vastly in lustre and brilliancy.

The famous blue diamond known as the Hope diamond, from the fact that it belonged to one of the distinguished family of bankers of that name, is really one of the most valuable diamonds in Europe, for it is indeed one of the marvels of the mineral kingdom. Its weight is 44¹⁄₂ karats, but its history is unknown; and this obscurity leads to the suspicion it may be the lost gem of the French casket since reduced in size. It is now mounted as a medallion with a border of rose-cut diamonds and twenty brilliants, each of one karat weight and of the finest water.

This beautiful gem was shown to the public at the great Exhibition of 1851 in London, and the description given of it by Mr. Hertz is worth repeating here. It is “a most magnificent and rare brilliant of a deep sapphire-blue, of the greatest purity and most beautifully cut: it is of true proportions, not too thick nor too wide-spread. This matchless gem combines the beautiful color of the sapphire with the prismatic fire and brilliancy of the diamond; and on account of its extraordinary color, great size, and other fine qualities, it certainly may be called unique, as we may presume that there exists no cabinet nor any collection of crown jewels in the world which can boast of the possession of so curious and fine a gem.”

The value of this wonderful specimen of Nature’s work has been variously estimated. It is understood that Mr. Hope paid but $65,000 for it, which is a mere bagatelle to its comparative worth. To our view this matchless gem should be valued as highly as any of the fine paragon diamonds of the world, and we do not include the Koh-i-noor as among this number. In this estimate we refer only to the comparison of actual merits and qualities, unbiassed by the whims of royalty or of fashion.

A hundred years ago and more the citizens of London, transported with joy over the victory at Culloden by the Duke of Cumberland, hailed the soldier as a hero and a deliverer, and presented him with a beautiful diamond. It was a splendid gem of thirty-two karats weight, and cost the city the sum of $50,000. Not many years ago, however, the House of Hanover laid claim to the gem by reason of certain laws of inheritance; and we are informed that Queen Victoria, after investigating the claim, ordered the gem to be given up to the claimant.

Mr. Hertz, of London, in the course of his long experience collected a very costly, as well as unique and beautiful, collection of gems. His cabinet of diamonds, embracing almost every shade and color, rivalled in excellence the celebrated Wernerian cabinet at Freiburg, and that of Abbé Haüy at the Jardin des Plantes at Paris; but was surpassed by that of Helmreicher now preserved in the Imperial Museum at Vienna.

As the reader may be interested in the tastes of the English nobility in the good old times, we will look over a few of the pages of English history, and relate some of the incidents of court life, and describe the appearance of some of the distinguished characters of different reigns.

Eleanor of Provence exhibited great extravagance at her coronation as Queen of King Henry III., who was called the greatest fop of his time (1236). It was probably Eleanor who established the fashion of wearing chaplets of gold and gems over the hair. On the occasion of her coronation she had on no less than nine garlands or wreaths formed of gold and clusters of colored precious stones. She had, also, among her regalia, a great crown glorious with gems, and girdles radiant with the most beautiful specimens of the mineral kingdom. The wedding present from her sister, Queen Marguerite of France, was a large silver peacock, whose train was set with sapphires and pearls and other precious stones. It was used as a reservoir for perfumed waters.

It seems that the old Crusaders were wont to deck themselves with gems; and Provençal traditions declare that the first intimation Queen Berengaria had of the seizure of Richard Cœur de Lion was the sale of a belt adorned with gems, which she knew he wore and would not part with except by violence.

The coronation of Henry VIII. was attended with extraordinary splendor, and the King was arrayed with the finest gems that could be obtained.

At the famous Tournament of the Cloth of Gold, the English and French nobility attempted to outshine each other in the magnificence of their dresses and decorations. And the vanity of the festival caused the financial distress or ruin of many a gallant knight.

At the banquet at this time King Henry gave Anne Boleyn a beautiful jewel valued at 15,000 crowns.

When Bluff King Hal went to meet his bride, Anne of Cleves, he was arrayed so magnificently as to be likened by the wits of the time to the “king of diamonds.” He wore a coat of purple velvet curiously embroidered with gold and lace. “The sleeves were cut, and lined with cloth of gold, and clasped with great buttons of diamonds, rubies, and Orient pearls; his sword and girdle set with stones and special emeralds; his cap garnished with stones, but his bonnet was so rich of jewels that few men could value them. Besides all this he wore a collar of such Balais rubies and pearls that few men ever saw the like.”

Henry demanded of Francis I. of France, the gems and jewels which had belonged to his sister Mary, who had married Louis XII. Among them were a ruby two inches and a half long, some great pearls, and large diamonds, forming together a casket which the Earl of Worcester describes as the “goodliest and richest sight of jewels he ever saw.” But they were never returned; and Francis refused to allow the claim on account of the loss of the fine diamond known as the Mirror of Naples, and which he valued at 30,000 crowns. What this diamond really was, and its subsequent history, is still a matter of historical conjecture.

Mary Queen of Scots, when married to the Dauphin of France in 1558, was decked in a marvellous manner with all that art could afford at the time. Her crown was of exquisite workmanship, and was composed of gold, with diamonds, pearls, rubies, and emeralds of immense value, having a huge carbuncle suspended in the middle valued at half a million crowns. Around her neck was hung the esteemed jewel known in Scottish history as the “Great Harry.” The inventories of her property show that she possessed a large number of valuable gems. It seems that she lavished upon Bothwell, before they parted at Carberry Hill, jewels of more than $30,000 in value.

One of the most magnificent pageants known in English history was that celebrated by the wealth of England and illustrated with the poetry of Ben Jonson, and which was the occasion of investing the eldest son of Queen Anne with the rights of the Prince of Wales, in 1609. The “Glorious Masque,” which took place at this time, has never been excelled in England. The whole court of England and all the aristocratic beauties of the day were engaged in the event. The palace of Whitehall was transformed into a scene of enchantment under the hands of the best artists of the time, guided by the taste of Inigo Jones. This magnificent festival, characterized by so many beautiful and dazzling scenes, was the happiest in the life of Queen Anne of Denmark.

A few years after this glorious celebration, which lingered in the memory of the participants like a golden dream, Queen Anne died; and the King, on opening her coffers and cabinets, discovered that all of her beautiful gems and jewels had disappeared; and notwithstanding the Queen’s maid and attendants were arrested, and diligent search made in all directions, there is no evidence that even a trace was ever found of the missing treasure. No vestige was ever obtained of the jewels which Herrick made for her, and which were worth nearly $200,000.

When the Duke of Buckingham was sent to Paris, in 1625, to bring over to England Queen Henrietta Maria, he carried with him twenty-seven rich suits of clothing, as beautiful and valuable as the invention of the times could make them. The suit arranged for his entry into Paris was reckoned of a value of more than a quarter of a million of dollars. It was made of white satin and uncut velvet, set all over with diamonds. His spurs, hat-band, feather, girdle, and sword were all covered with diamonds. For the wedding day, at Paris, he had a suit of purple satin, embroidered all over with Orient pearls, and a cloak to match, made after the Spanish fashion, all of the value of about one hundred thousand dollars.

Charles I. had many fine gems and jewels at his disposal; and, according to the documents still extant, he made free use of them. The very first year of his reign, he examined the contents of the jewel house, with a view of pledging them in the future; and it is said that his queen, Henrietta, raised in one year ten millions of dollars on the royal jewels. The great collar of rubies was sold in Holland.

Charles, in the days of his prosperity, was an eager purchaser of gems and jewelry; and a record is preserved which shows that he bought in a year and a half, a quarter of a million dollars’ worth of jewelry, and chiefly to use as gifts. It is also related that he bought the great diamond which Sir Paul Pindar brought home from Constantinople, and which he valued at $150,000. The subsequent history of this rare gem is to be placed among the mysterious things of the past.

The queen of James II. was ornamented for the coronation in a manner that would have startled even Lollia Paulina; and a half million dollars were expended in dressing her up. The diadem also was a wondrous piece of extravagance for the times, and cost more than five hundred and fifty thousand dollars. The historian of the times states that “the jewels she had on were reckoned at a million’s worth, which made her shine like an angel.” The exiled Queen, in the after years of her widowhood, said to the nuns of Chaillot, “My dress and royal mantle were covered with precious stones; and it took all the jewels that the goldsmiths of London could procure to decorate my crown.”

When Queen Caroline was crowned as consort of George II., she made use of all the material she could find in London. And Lord Hervey exclaims that “the appearance and the truth of her finery was a mixture of magnificence and meanness not unlike the eclat of royalty in many other particulars, when it comes to be nicely considered, and its source traced to what money hires and flattery lends.” For it is stated that she used upon her head all the pearls and necklaces she could borrow from the ladies of quality; and that she placed upon her petticoat all the diamonds she could hire of the Jews and jewellers in town.

When Philip of Spain went to England to receive his bride, Queen Mary, the ceremonies on the occasion were conducted with great splendor. The King was accompanied by sixty of the most distinguished grandees of Spain, clad in royal array. He was dressed in a robe of rich brocade bordered with large pearls and diamonds. His trunk hose were of white satin worked with silver. He wore a collar of beaten gold full of inestimable diamonds, and from which hung the jewel of the Golden Fleece. Around his knee was the Garter, studded with beautiful gems of various colors.

The daughter of Henry VIII. inherited her father’s love for ornamental display; and at the time of her marriage with Philip of Spain, she appeared magnificently arrayed. She is described as wearing a robe whose ample train was bordered with pearls and diamonds of immense size and value. The large sleeves were ornamented with clusters of gold set with pearls and diamonds. Her coif was bordered with two rows of large diamonds; and she wore on her breast a splendid diamond of inestimable value, which Philip had sent her as a gift. Mary, on her death-bed, sent the most of her jewels to her sister Elizabeth of England; and King Philip added to them a casket of very beautiful gems.

Elizabeth, when she became Queen of England, gradually acquired a passion for jewelry, which finally became absurd and grotesque. She possessed at one time two thousand dresses and an immense quantity of gems. The portrait of Queen Elizabeth at Henham Hall represents her in a blaze of jewels. She appears with an enormous ruff, which rose as a bird-like structure behind the fabric of jewels which adorned her head, until it overtopped the cross of her regal diadem. A rich collar of gold, woven in delicate filigree work, set with pearls, rubies, and amethysts, adorned her neck. The bodice of her dress was also ornamented with gold filigree set with many gems; and the sleeves were profusely ornamented to match the bodice. Horace Walpole, in describing her portraits, says, “There is not one that can be called beautiful. The profusion of ornaments with which they are loaded are marks of her continual fondness for dress; while they entirely exclude all grace, and leave no more room for a painter’s genius, than if he had been employed to copy an Indian idol, totally composed of hands and necklaces. A pale Roman nose; a head of hair loaded with crowns, and powdered with diamonds; a vast ruff, a vaster fardingale, and a bushel of pearls,—are features by which everybody knows at once the picture of Elizabeth.”

Sir Walter Raleigh dressed himself in a gorgeous manner, and was profusely decorated with gems. On court days, even his shoes wore gems of the value of more than $30,000 (£6,600). His armor was of solid silver, with sword and belt blazing with diamonds, rubies, and pearls.

The Duke of Buckingham, the favorite of King James, wore his diamonds loosely attached, so that he might shake off a few at pleasure. His cloaks were trimmed with great diamond buttons; his hat-bands were of diamonds; also his cockades. Among his many rich suits was one of white uncut velvet, set all over with diamonds, to the value of £80,000; besides a great feather bespangled with diamonds, as well as his sword, girdle, hat, and spurs.

In olden times the shrine of Thomas à Becket was famous throughout England and attracted countless devotees from all parts of the realm. One hundred thousand persons of all ranks are said to have visited it in one year, offering a vast variety of gifts. In the twelfth century Louis VII. of France, disguised as a common pilgrim in the meanest garb, visited the shrine and presented it with a famous precious stone, called the Regale of France, and as large as a bird’s egg. Not a fragment of this glittering and splendid shrine—a mass of gold and jewels—remains at the present day to interest the antiquary; and its treasures have been scattered to the winds, leaving no trace behind.

The churches of England, as well as France and Spain, were at one time enormously rich in precious stones and ecclesiastical ornaments of the jewellers’ art; but wars and insurrections are fatal to collections of the rare and the beautiful; and the fury and cupidity of the Leaguers, the iconoclasts, and the revolutionists have destroyed these treasures of art and nature, or dispersed them so that their identity is lost.

The magnificence of the English clergy led Pope Innocent III. to exclaim, “O England, thou garden of delights! Thou art truly an inexhaustible fount of riches. From thy abundance much may be exacted.”

CHAPTER X.
ASIATIC GEMS.

To Asia we naturally turn for the history of the diamond, and a solution of some of the phenomena connected with the mineral. But here we have to contend with vexations at all points; and instead of clearness, we have obscurity, disconnected histories, conflicting traditions, and superstitious fancies. However, from the mass of fragments which have been preserved, the patient antiquary eventually may be able to arrange an interesting story relating to the gem in the early days of its discovery and its adoption in ornamentation.

We will now proceed to mention some of the celebrated stones whose history has been more or less clearly defined; and regret to say that there are a large number of others of great interest and value, but of which we are unable to give a correct description.

The Hindoos prize diamonds greatly on account of their supposed spiritual properties, and they reluctantly part with them unless compelled by dire necessity, or induced by the hope of greater gain. Many of the fine diamonds brought to Europe from Asia have blood-stained histories, and some of them are connected with appalling atrocities. Therefore we may with propriety say that few of the noble gems would have found their way to Europe had the free will of their rightful owners been consulted.

The foremost gem in the history of the diamond was that which was called the Great Mogul. This was the largest of all known diamonds, and was found in the rich mines of Gani about the year 1650, or nearly a century after their discovery. It became the property of Vizier Mirgimola, who, although a Persian by birth, had by ability and tact risen to the honor of general and vizier to the King of Golconda. By means of his rapacity in war, and his success in working the diamond mines, he became enormously wealthy, and accumulated immense numbers of gems. The King finally became jealous of the wealth and power of his favorite, and resolved to destroy him. But Mirgimola, warned of his danger in time, succeeded in escaping with all his treasures to the capital of Shah Jehan, the Great Mogul. The wily Persian gained the favor and protection of the Hindoo monarch by magnificent presents of gems, the chief of which was the immense diamond which has since been called the Great Mogul.

The original weight of this mammoth gem is said to have been 787¹⁄₂ karats; but during the process of cutting it was reduced to 279 karats. Tavernier relates that the work had been intrusted to a Venetian lapidary by the name of Hortensio Borghis, who, ignorant of the duties of his task, removed the flaws and external imperfections by grinding the surface of the stone away. The labor required by this operation seems almost incredible when we come to consider the hardness of the stone, and estimate the difficulty of polishing it, especially with the rude means then in use by the Oriental lapidaries. The cutting of the Pitt diamond (now the Regent) required two years’ time, with the aid of modern appliances and the facilities afforded by means of cleavage, by which large fragments were removed and utilized. Therefore the statement that this stone was reduced solely by grinding from 787¹⁄₂ karats to 279 karats is likely to meet with disbelief among the lapidaries; for the operation must have required more than the fifteen years which had elapsed from the discovery of the gem to the time Tavernier examined it. Tavernier says distinctly that cleavage was not resorted to in facilitating the reduction of the stone. We quote: “Had the Sieur Hortensio been well acquainted with his profession he might have obtained from this great stone some good pieces without doing any injury to the King, and without having taken so much trouble in grinding it away; but he was not a very skilful diamond-cutter.” This statement establishes the fact that the secret of reducing diamonds by cleavage was known at that time.

Fifteen years after the discovery Tavernier saw the gem in the hands of Aurungzeb, who was then Mogul, Shah Jehan having been deposed and placed in confinement. The distinguished traveller was allowed to examine the gem, weigh it, and make a drawing of it. It was then of the form of half an egg, and very high-crowned, and had been cut with many facets, quite regularly arranged over its superior surfaces. It was also of fine water, and disfigured by only one crack on its lower border, and a little flaw in the interior.

The French traveller gives an account of the ceremony of his examination as conducted with great precision and the utmost solemnity, as though the gems were the crystallizations or the embodiments of departed spirits. The gems were brought in upon two lacquered trays covered with brocade, and were counted over thrice, and three lists made of them by different scribes. This process was not particularly flattering to the pride of the guest, but it serves to illustrate or establish the fact that the Hindoo character for deception and theft was quite as marked then as now.

Since this period no further mention has been made of the gem by any authentic writer; but it is supposed to have formed a part of the plunder of Delhi, when Nadir Shah captured all the treasures accumulated during four hundred years of prosperity, and which were valued at from $150,000,000 to $350,000,000.

The next largest diamond shown to Tavernier was one of only 54¹⁄₂ karats, and all the rest were much inferior. Hence it is surmised that the Koh-i-noor, the Shah, and the Daria-i-noor were then unknown, and were discovered at a later period. But it is stated that the former Mogul, who was still in confinement, retained many of the gems of his own collecting, and that they may have been among them. Or they may have been in possession of Mirgimola. At all events, the Mogul disappeared with the last Tatar invasion; and new paragons, like the Koh-i-noor, became known to the world. After the assassination of Nadir Shah his treasures were scattered among many chieftains, and all record of many of them has been lost.

The fate of the Mogul is shrouded in mystery. The famous gem preserved in the Persian treasury and called Daria-i-noor, “the ocean of lustre,” which Forbes saw and described, is not the lost stone. By some it is believed to be hidden away in some obscure fortress, to appear at some future day when the possessor may display his hidden treasure in safety. This view is certainly warranted by the discovery of the large flat diamond of one hundred and thirty karats among the jewels taken from the harem of Reeza Kooli at the capture of Coocha by the Persian army in 1832. Also the finding of the celebrated crown of Chosroes by Abbas in the treasury of one of the Princes in the Lauristan Mountains near the Persian Gulf, where it had lain concealed for a thousand years.

Were it not for the general accuracy and truthfulness of Tavernier, and the drawing he has left of the diamond, we might claim the Orloff as the missing Mogul. Certainly the resemblance in form is very remarkable; and the location of the flaws, with the rare circumstance of shape, are facts very strongly in favor of the Orloff. The question now arises, did Tavernier make an error in his weight and draw the outlines carelessly or from memory? We have seen how confused history has become regarding the identity of the Sancy diamond.

The real Koh-i-noor of Hindoo history is probably the great Mogul or the Orloff; and the name would be appropriately applied to the dome-like shape of both of the stones, with their flashing beams of light, rather than to the flattened form of the English stone now called the Koh-i-noor, and which exhibited but little lustre. It is highly probable that the diamond of Runjeet Sing, the English Koh-i-noor, was one of the magnificent diamonds surrendered to Nadir Shah by Mohammed Shah at the sack of Delhi in 1739, but there is no positive proof of his obtaining the great heirloom of the descendants of Aurungzeb.

In reviewing the history of the Great Mogul gems, from the time of Tavernier down to the present day, we are inclined to regard the term Koh-i-noor, or “mountain of light,” as a misnomer, and that the gem received this distinction only after its arrival at Kabul, or came into the possession of Runjeet Sing; neither have we any evidence to prove that the Koh-i-noor was the Great Mogul; for that appellation is not given to it by the early writers. But it is not probable that the term, so superlative of excellence and superiority, would be applied to an inferior gem, while the great diamond of the Mogul, weighing two hundred and eighty karats, was in existence.

The history of all these great diamonds is very obscure; and as the value of the Indian weights and measures varies so much at different places and at different times, it is quite impossible to follow with precision the fragments of history that relate to them.

Several accounts have been given of the manner in which the Koh-i-noor fell into the clutches of Runjeet; but that of Dr. Wilson, as published in the official catalogue of the great Exhibition at London, is probably correct. It is as follows:—

“When Shah Soujah was driven from Kabul, he became the nominal guest and actual prisoner of Runjeet Sing, who spared neither opportunity nor menace until, in 1813, he compelled the fugitive monarch to resign the precious gem, presenting him on the occasion, it is said, with a lakh of rupees, or about £12,000 sterling.

“According to Shah Soujah’s own account, however, he assigned to him the revenues of three villages, not one rupee of which he ever realized. Runjeet was highly elated by the acquisition of the diamond, and wore it as an armlet at all public festivals.

“When he was dying, an attempt was made by persons about him to persuade him to make the diamond a present to Juggernaut; and it is said he intimated by an inclination of the head his assent. The treasurer, however, in whose charge it was, refused to give it up without some better warrant; and Runjeet dying before a written order could be signed by him, the Koh-i-noor was preserved for a while for his successors. It was occasionally worn by Khurruk Sing and Shir Sing. After the murder of the latter it remained in the Lahore Treasury until the supersession of Dhulip Sing and the annexation of the Punjaub by the British Government, when the civil authorities took possession of the Lahore Treasury, under the stipulation previously made, that all the property of the State should be confiscated to the East India Company, in part payment of the debt due by the Lahore Government, and of the expenses of the war. It was at the same time stipulated that the Koh-i-noor should be surrendered to the Queen of England.

“The diamond was conveyed to Bombay by Governor General the Earl of Dalhousie, whom ill health had compelled to repair to the coast, and was then given in charge to Lieutenant-Colonel Mackeson, C. B., and Captain T. Ramsay, the Military Secretary to the Governor General, to take to England. These officers embarked on board Her Majesty’s steamship ‘Medea,’ and left Bombay on the 6th of April, 1850. They arrived at Portsmouth on the 30th of June; and two days afterwards relinquished their charge to the Chairman and Deputy-chairman of the Court of Directors, by whom, in company with the President of the Board of Control, the Koh-i-noor was delivered to her Majesty on the 3d of July,—an appropriate and honorable close to its eventful career.”

We are led to infer from the accounts of history that some of the Indian rulers collected enormous quantities of the precious stones. It is stated that Mahmoud, in his campaign in India about the eleventh century, captured the temple Bheen, which, according to Ferishta, contained a greater quantity of precious stones and pearls “than was ever collected in the royal treasury of any prince on earth.” They were carried off to Ghizna.

In another campaign the idol at Sumnat, fifteen feet high, was captured, which being broken open yielded great quantities of rubies, diamonds, and pearls which had been concealed in it. These were carried to Ghizna. Ferishta says Ala-ud-deen obtained from the Raja of Mahrattas fifty pounds of diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and sapphires, and also one hundred and seventy-five pounds of pearls.

In the middle of the sixteenth century Acber of India gave a splendid banquet in honor of his birthday; and, if the reports concerning it are correct, it was one of the most magnificent entertainments ever given on the earth. Acres of land were covered with silken and flaxen tents, and the horses and elephants were bespangled with gold and gems. The tents of the Nabob were not only exquisitely made and adorned, but even the carpets which covered the earth were richly embroidered with gold, pearls, and precious stones. In describing the beauty and magnificence of the Hindoo nobles, the historian states that they were adorned with diamonds that “sparkled like the firmament.”

Shah Jehan, the greatest of Mogul sovereigns since Timour, collected the wealth of India around him, and lavished it in a manner that reads more like a chapter in the “Arabian Nights” than a page of historic reality. At his death the treasury contained $150,000,000; and his palace, with its embellishments and ornaments, was the most beautiful the world has ever seen. The Peacock Throne was valued at $30,000,000, and his crown at $12,000,000. The diadem had twelve points, each tipped with a diamond of large size and the purest water. In the centre was embedded a huge pearl, and the rest of the crown was a glittering mass of rubies, diamonds, and other gems.

The dress of the Emperor was in keeping with his extravagance: around his neck he wore three strings of immense pearls; his arms were covered with armlets of diamonds and bracelets of other gems; his sword and buckler were incrusted with diamonds and rubies; and his sceptre was entwined with a chain of pearls, rubies, and diamonds. Besides his crown, he had a rich turban plumed with long heron feathers; on one side was a huge ruby, on the other a diamond, while an immense emerald decorated the front.

The famous Peacock Throne of Indian history is no myth; for Tavernier examined it with care, and has left a description of it so clear, that its reality and its value are matters of fact. It was so called from the figures of two peacocks with expanded tails standing behind it as large as life. These figures were constructed of gold and precious stones of all varieties, and so arranged as to represent the natural colors of the birds. The beautiful hues of the feathers were closely imitated by the arrangement of fine rubies, diamonds, sapphires, emeralds, and other gems.

The throne was six feet long and four feet wide, and was constructed of solid gold, inlaid with diamonds, emeralds, and rubies. Steps of silver were placed in front of it; while a canopy of gold, fringed with pearls, supported by twelve pillars emblazoned with flashing gems, surmounted the whole. Between the peacocks stood a representation of the parrot, carved from emerald or some green stone. On each side of the throne was placed one of the sacred umbrellas, called chattars, made of richly embroidered crimson velvet fringed with pearls. Their handles were of solid gold, about eight feet long, and studded with diamonds. This was the most costly and superb work of art of its kind ever invented.

Its rival was the Cerulean Throne of the House of Bhamenee in the Nizam. It was constructed in the seventeenth century, and, according to the description of Ferishta, the Persian historian, was nine feet long by three feet wide, made of ebony, covered with plates of gold, and incrusted with gems. Its value was estimated at quite twenty millions of dollars. At the sack of Delhi, the Peacock Throne, with many other priceless relics, fell into the hands of Nadir Shah and his ravenous followers, and was carried off by them, and broken up.

We may form an idea of the magnificent costumes worn by the Eastern monarchs, from the description given by Mr. Elphinstone, the British envoy to the King of Kabul, in 1808. At the reception given to the embassy, the king was literally covered with gems. At first sight, he appeared to be clothed with an armor composed of jewels; but, on close inspection, his dress was found to consist of a green tunic covered with large flowers in gold and precious stones. Over these a large breastplate of diamonds shaped like two flattened fleurs de lis was worn. Upon each thigh, ornaments fashioned after the same manner were placed; while large emerald bracelets appeared on the arms, and many other jewels were adjusted to different parts of the body. In one of these bracelets flashed the Koh-i-noor, then regarded as one of the largest diamonds in the world. Over the chest were arranged some strings of very large pearls, like loose cross-belts. The crown was about nine inches high, and formed entirely of precious stones, like the wonderful plumes of Prince Esterhazy. It seemed to be radiated, like the ancient crowns; and behind the rays appeared peaks of purple velvet. Several small branches with pendants apparently projected from the crown; but the ornament was so complicated and so dazzling, that it was difficult for the spectators to understand it, and quite impossible to describe it.

Other famous diamonds besides the Mogul are missing; and modern history is unable to account for them. What has become of the splendid flat diamond weighing two hundred and forty-two karats, which Tavernier examined in Golconda; or the immense Agrah of six hundred and forty-five karats, in the rough, which the same traveller saw in India? Were they also gathered by the followers of Nadir, and divided in the spoliation of the property of the conqueror? We know that Persia, enriched by the last conquest of India, is immensely rich in precious stones of all descriptions; but the number, the character, and the value of them, are as shadowy as those of Turkey. However, we have a ray of intelligence from Bernier, who hastily estimated the value of the Persian jewels at thirteen and one half milliards of francs.

This prodigious estimate has been strengthened by the gorgeous appearance of the last Persian ambassador to France. The costume of this Emir fairly blazed with the brilliancy of the most costly gems, and recalled the departed glory of the last Prince of Esterhazy. The presents sent at the same time by the Sultan to the Empress Eugenie were most magnificent, especially the diamond bracelets, and were glorious emblems of Oriental favor.

Among the diamonds possessed by the Persian Crown, besides the Daria-i-noor, which is said to weigh two hundred and thirty-two karats, we have information of three others of remarkable size and beauty. They are named the Taj-Mah, or Crown of the Moon, of one hundred and forty-six karats; the Sea of Glory, of sixty-six karats; and the Mountain of Splendor, of one hundred and thirty-five karats, valued at $729,000.

Dr. Beke, at the meeting of the British Association, in 1851, read a paper on a new diamond that had lately come into the possession of Persia. He referred to the diamond slab of one hundred and thirty karats that had been captured at Coocha, in 1832, and which he thought might have been a part of the Koh-i-noor when in its natural state. The only account of its history the Persians could obtain, was the statement that it was found in the possession of a poor man, a native of Khorasan, who used it for the purpose of lighting his fires, by striking it against steel [the mineral does not possess the property], and that it had thereby sustained some damage. The gem was presented by Abbas Murza to his father, Futteh Ali Shah, and is presumed to be now among the crown jewels of Persia.

One of the latest accounts of the Persian treasures is given by Mr. Eastwick, who was permitted to examine them. He found them placed in a small, strongly built room, to which access was had by means of a narrow, steep stairway and very small door. In this apartment, spread out upon thick, velvety carpets, were displayed gems and jewels of the value of $35,000,000. Conspicuous among them was the Kaianian crown, which was shaped like a flower-pot, and topped by an immense uncut ruby as big as a hen’s egg, which is supposed to have come from Siam. Beside this tiara were spread two lambskins covered with beautiful aigrettes of diamonds; and before them lay trays of pearl, ruby, and emerald necklaces, with countless rings. The famous Kaianian belt was also an object of wonder. This relic of barbaric splendor weighs about twenty pounds. It is nearly a foot in depth, and is incrusted massively with splendid diamonds, pearls, rubies, and emeralds.

The exhibition of arms was worthy of the Oriental taste for martial decoration, and recalled to memory the ancient fondness for such things, and the sword and scabbard of Mithridates, which has been mentioned in history as being of enormous value. Some of these, now belonging to the Persian Shah, are magnificently decorated with gold and gems, to the value of more than a quarter of a million of dollars.

The arms of defence of the Oriental nations have been noted from the earliest times for the beauty and splendor of their decorations, in which lavish use has been made of the finest diamonds, emeralds, rubies, and other precious stones, set in a variety of metals. The excellence of these precious productions was made known to the nations of the Mediterranean by means of commercial caravans long before the invasions of Xerxes or Alexander; and some of them are objects of admiration to the skilled artisans of the present day.

In Lahore, Benares, and Lucknow are yet preserved the secrets of the gold workers of Assyria and ancient Phœnicia, which have long been forgotten in the countries where they were invented. The enamels of these artisans, especially the green, red, blue, and turquoise hues, are not surpassed in beauty of tint by the finest enamels of Paris.

As Persia is the home of the turquoise, the traveller would expect to see the finest representative of the mineral species in this collection. And he will not be disappointed, for the specimen of turquoise treasured here above all others is of a magnificent color, from three to four inches long, and without a flaw. Its value is not given; but we may draw an inference from Shylock’s turquoise, which was worth “a wilderness of monkeys.”

Besides the above enumerated articles the treasury contains numberless objects of value not described, and among them piles of gauntlets and belts, massive with pearls and diamonds.

The present ruler of Persia, Nasiru’d-din, during his late visit to Europe, displayed upon his person many of the chief treasures of his crown. They were not, however, exhibited to advantage, for his costume was an incongruous mixture of the amplitude of nomadic ideas with the close-fitting symmetry of the French tailor. The ridiculous figure of the Shah, surmounted by the ancient lofty Persian hat, heightened in comicality by a pair of gold-bowed spectacles, presented a picture that detracted from the splendor of the gems which he wore. His coat, which was made after the style of the Parisian frock, was plaited over the hips and adorned with extraordinary gems. From waist to shoulder, arranged in echelon, were placed five enormous diamonds, each said to be larger than the English Koh-i-noor. The collar and sleeves of this garment were also fairly incrusted by brilliants of great beauty; while over his breast hung his various insignia and orders set with the finest of gems. His sword-belt and sheath were formed of gold, studded with diamonds, rubies, and emeralds; while his golden spurs were formed of diamonds of such perfection as to flash like sunbeams as he walked along.

Many fine diamonds are undoubtedly to be found among the nabobs and princes of India. And their concealment may have been advised by the lessons of the past. Fears of English rapacity may have caused the fracture of the famous Nizam diamond, or a report to that effect. This beautiful gem, which is said to have weighed three hundred and forty karats, belonged to the King of Golconda, and is said to have been broken at the commencement of the last Indian revolt.

In 1807 a fine diamond of seventy-seven karats was obtained by the Ranee Ruthen from the bed of the river Sumbhulpore; and in 1809 a fine gem of one hundred and sixty-eight karats was found in the sands of the river Mahamuddee.

The King of Ava possesses many diamonds, but of unknown value. Colonel Symes saw, in his visit of 1795, many rude ornaments of remarkable splendor and value. One of the state carriages fairly blazed with its decorations of burnished gold, covered with diamonds and other gems.

The Sultan of Mattan in Borneo is said to possess a remarkable diamond; but there is some doubt as to its authenticity, like its great rival, that of the King of Portugal. But Mr. Hugh Low, Colonial Secretary of the Island, declares in his work on Sarawak and its productions, published in 1848, that the gem of the Sultans is a real diamond, and of the great weight of three hundred and sixty-seven karats. It was, at that time, in the rough state, and its shape was that of an egg indented on one side. Its value was estimated by Mr. Crawford to be £269,378. Sir Stamford Raffles relates that the stone has remained as an heirloom in the royal family for four descents, and is almost the only appendage of royalty now remaining. The Governor of Batavia, desirous of obtaining the gem, is said to have sent Mr. Stewart to Borneo to negotiate for it. But although the tempting offer of $150,000, with two brigs of war with their guns and ammunition, was made to the Sultan, he refused to deprive his family of the rich inheritance which was supposed to be in the possession of the diamond.

In the time of Sir Stamford Raffles few courts in Europe could boast of a more brilliant display of diamonds than was exhibited by the ladies of Batavia in the prosperous days of Dutch commerce, when the trade of India and Eastern Asia was to a very great extent in the control of Holland.

We cannot properly close this chapter on the gems of Asia without making a brief allusion to that master-piece of architecture, the Taj Mahal, the palace-tomb, which Shah Jehan erected at Agra in memory of his beautiful and beloved wife. The Mogul Emperor promised the dying Empress the most beautiful tomb the world had ever seen; and he kept his promise. Even to-day, after so many centuries of neglect and pillage, the fairy-like structure rises to the view more like one of the dreams of the “Arabian Nights” than a material edifice constructed by human hands.

In its construction the wealth of India was placed at the service of its architects, and thousands of laborers were employed for many years. The chief architect was a Frenchman, M. de Bordeaux, who also designed the famous Peacock Throne at Delhi. Enormous quantities of precious and semi-precious stones of all descriptions were used in its ornamentation, and inlaid in its walls, its columns, and ornaments. The images were masses of glittering gems, and some of the mosaics were marvels of beauty and human skill.

In a curious manuscript, still preserved, is given an account of the gems, jewels, etc., and their value, used in the construction. All parts of Asia were searched for the richest gems,—Thibet for its turquoises, Ceylon for its lapis lazuli, Persia for its amethysts, Lunka for its sapphires, and Pannah for its diamonds. The famous Hindoo temple of Sumnat was, in the days of its perfection, one of the most renowned of all the shrines of India, and must have been a structure of wonderful richness, when its fifty-six pillars, incrusted and inlaid with multitudes of precious stones, sparkled in the morning light. Even at the present day its ruins, though despoiled of their ornaments, are very beautiful and impressive.

CHAPTER XI.
MISCELLANEOUS.

The royal family of Brazil are said to possess diamonds of great beauty, selected for their superiority from the best of the products of the mines of the country. But we have not been able to obtain reliable descriptions of them.

The Crown of Portugal, by virtue of its inheritance, is said to own immense numbers of the gem; and it is understood that they are held in reserve, and only a certain quantity are to be sold from time to time according to the demands of the market. In corroboration of this report it is said that the Bank of Lisbon, sold, in 1863, rough diamonds to the value of 1,800,000 francs out of the collection brought from Brazil by John VI. in 1821. It was also stated that the value of the remainder was estimated at 35,000,000 francs.

Mr. Mawe, at the time of his visit to Lisbon, stated that the treasury of the King contained diamonds amounting in weight to four thousand or five thousand karats. The same traveller and gem-expert says that a vast number of the Brazilian diamonds have passed into the possession of the King of Portugal. And he furthermore states that he examined diamonds belonging to this potentate, which were worth more than two million pounds sterling.

Among the crown jewels of Portugal there is a gem of large dimensions which has been reported to be a diamond weighing 1,680 karats. Mr. Murray described it to be as large as an ostrich egg, and added that Mr. Mawe informed him that it was a white topaz. Romè de L’Isle, in his treatise on Crystallography, published in 1783, describes the stone as a diamond, but admits that it is suspected to be a white topaz. It is a little singular that this discrepancy and obscurity has not been definitely cleared up during all this time, when the character of the stone can so easily be ascertained. As the massive variety of diamond is found in masses of more than one thousand karats, it is even probable that the crystalline and transparent variety may occur of equal weight.

Mr. Murray mentioned a beautiful gem of two hundred and fifteen karats, called the Round Brilliant of Portugal, and estimated its value at £388,290. Mr. Mawe describes another a little less in size, and also two nearly perfect octahedrons of one hundred and thirty-four and one hundred and twenty karats each.

The state waistcoat of Joseph I. had twenty buttons, each button being composed of a solitaire diamond of the value of $20,000, and the rest of its ornaments were corresponding in beauty and value. This garment is said to have been the richest ever seen in Europe, with the exception of the recent grand illumination by the Shah of Persia. It has also been stated that the golden cane of John VI. had in its top a splendid brilliant of the value of a million of francs.

The largest of the Brazilian diamonds was discovered as late as 1852, by a negress working in the mines of Begagem. Like most of the large diamonds, its form was not symmetrical, and its shape was much modified from the regular crystalline forms. In 1856 it was brought to France and exhibited to the members of the Academy of Sciences. The gem then weighed in its rough state 254¹⁄₂ karats, and appeared perfectly transparent and without tint. It was placed in the hands of Coster, of Amsterdam, for cutting, and reduced in weight to 127 karats. The form given it was the brilliant; but the gem was cut too thin to exhibit its full beauty. The spread of its table will be found, on comparison, to be much greater than that of the Regent diamond, which weighs 136 karats, or almost 10 karats more; therefore Babinet properly exclaims against the taste which adopted an imperfect brilliant, at a great reduction of weight, when the form of the brilliolette, like that of one of the Sancys, would have preserved three fourths of its weight and given it a more splendid lustre. It would then have been the second diamond in weight and beauty in Europe. This gem is known as the Star of the South, but is sometimes called the Halphen diamond, from the name of the gentleman who bought it on its arrival in Europe.

The gem treasures of the Elector of Saxony are among the most valuable and unique in Europe. The commencement of their collection dates from an early period. The famous silver mines, prior to the discovery of America, placed the Saxon princes among the richest sovereigns of Europe; and they took pride in exhibiting their magnificence, in expending vast sums of money in the purchase of gems, jewels, and works of art.

The treasures thus accumulated during a long period of time are of immense value; and the apartments where they are displayed remind the observer of the gorgeous descriptions of Oriental magnificence. And unless we except the unknown collection in the Turkish Seraglio and those of the Crown of Russia, it is the most extensive and interesting in the world. All that is rare and beautiful on earth is here represented; and the total valuation of all the objects of art and nature must amount to many millions of dollars. They are contained in eight large consecutive rooms, each surpassing the previous one in the splendor and richness of its contents. Among the diamonds are some large and unique gems of the rose pattern. The gala dress and the decorations of the Elector, which fairly dazzle the eye with their floods of brilliancy, are also kept here. In the epaulette there are three splendid brilliants which weigh nearly fifty carats each.

But the chief attraction among all this vast collection of gems is the famous green diamond. This wonderful stone is of oblong form, 1¹⁄₁₂ inches in length by ¹⁰⁄₁₂ of an inch in width, and weighs 31¹⁄₄ karats. It is mounted in a clasp, set with large white brilliants. The price paid for it is kept a profound secret; but it is reported that it was obtained at Warsaw by Augustus the Strong, and that he paid 60,000 thalers for it. Amateurs generally regard the blue diamond as the most astonishing and perfect of the products of the mineral kingdom; but we fail to perceive, in the exhibition of this color, any advantage over the fine green or the pure red diamonds.

There is another diamond in this collection which is one of the finest in Europe, although it weighs but 48³⁄₄ karats. It is known as the Saxon white brilliant, and is of rare perfection of form and brilliancy. It is about 1¹⁄₁₂ inches square, and is set in the insignia of the Order of the Golden Fleece, surrounded with other fine brilliants. Augustus purchased it, and is said to have given more than $700,000 for it. This gem has a great reputation for its beauty. Comparison with the Regent, the Orloff, and others, can alone determine its degree of excellence.

The fifth and sixth divisions of the eighth apartment are devoted to the display of diamonds, and the insignia of Saxony. The decorations of the Elector, consisting of buttons, collar, sword-hilt, and scabbard, all glittering with diamonds, present a charming appearance. There are also to be seen, profusely decorated with gems, the Saxon Order of the Rue Garland, and the seven orders of the Golden Fleece.

Among the royal treasures in Munich there are several beautiful pink diamonds of large size, and a magnificent blue one of thirty-six karats, which is set in the Order of the Golden Fleece.

In the treasury of the royal palace may be seen many fine single diamonds, together with magnificent emeralds and sapphires of great value. The King’s and Queen’s crowns, resplendent with brilliants, are kept here, with others of older date which belonged to the former Counts Palatine. Among the relics are preserved the ancient diadems of Henry II. and his Empress Kunigunda of the date 1010; also, the orb and sceptre of the Emperor Charles VII., together with his crown.

Prussia has but few diamonds, the policy of the Hohenzollerns having been adverse to the purchase of gems as baubles. Austria, however, is rich in diamonds, and possesses some extraordinary gems. The Imperial Jewel Office at Vienna contains a rare collection of great value. Here is preserved the famous Regalia of Charlemagne, which were buried with the great conqueror in his tomb at Aix la Chapelle. Barbarossa, in 1165, dared to violate the sanctity of this sepulchre, and removed the barbaric jewels, which are of great interest to the antiquary and the historian. For several centuries past they have been used at the coronation of the German emperors. The crown is a magnificent specimen of the art of the Middle Ages, and is ornamented with rough diamonds and other gems in their natural state.

The crown and sceptre of Rudolph II. may be seen here. They are also adorned with uncut diamonds and gems, and were formerly worn by the German emperors elect on their entrance into Frankfort.

The chains, collars, decorations, regalia, belonging to the dresses of the various Austrian Orders, namely, Golden Fleece, Maria Theresa, etc., and worn by the Emperor, exhibit a splendid collection of diamonds, topazes, emeralds, etc., unique in size and perfection.

Here is also to be seen the famous yellow diamond known as the Florentine. It is in the form of a double rose with facets cut all around, and weighs 139¹⁄₂ karats. It is of a fine lustre, but of a yellow tinge, sufficient to impair the beauty of the prismatic reflections. The Emperor Francis, as Grand Duke of Tuscany, inherited the gem, which accounts for its presence in Vienna.

This gem has been confounded with the diamond given to the Pope by Charles the Bold; but its history is very obscure, and its introduction into Europe is unknown. There is, however, a story among the Italians that it was first discovered by an amateur while hunting over the relics and objects of virtu in a curiosity shop at Florence, where it was regarded as a crystal of yellow quartz. Tavernier saw it in Florence in the middle of the seventeenth century, but does not mention its history. Besides this gem there are several large diamonds in Europe whose history has become very confused, and it is now difficult to trace their identity in several instances.

The Florentine is the rarest specimen of the kind known, and, although it is not cut with regularity, its lustre and its brilliancy are greatly increased by its star-like cut. It is 1¹⁄₆ inches in length, by one inch wide, and is neatly set in a large sevignée, surrounded by other fine diamonds. Its value is placed at $450,000. There is also another large and fine diamond intended as a button for a hat, but its history is unknown.

The finest rose-colored diamond known belongs to the Austrian jewels. It is of a beautiful rose-color, thirty-two karats in weight, and of remarkable lustre. It is now placed in the centre of a knot of white brilliants to which the decoration of the cross of Maria Theresa is attached. Here is also the beautiful bouquet of flowers made for Maria, and constructed out of colored diamonds and other precious stones.

The finest collection of colored diamonds in the world is to be seen here. It was made by a Tyrolese named Helmreicher, who went to Brazil and spent the most of his life there in searching for them among the different mines. They illustrate finely the wide range of color possessed by the gem.

The Empress of Austria, in 1800, during the war with France, wishing to emulate the manners of ancient warriors, sent to the Archduke Charles, then in command of the army of Bohemia, a helmet set with magnificent gems.

In ancient times it was not rare for Eastern monarchs to array themselves richly, which the stern Romans affected to despise, believing in the virtues of unadorned steel. The decorations of Artaxerxes Mnemon and Mithridates are said to have amounted to millions of dollars in value. It is also reported that Alexander, at the battle of Arbela, wore a helmet with a gorget of polished steel set with gems. Murat, however, the gayest of all modern generals, obtained his picturesque effects by means of colored fabrics and feathers rather than from gold and gems.

There were few persons among the frequenters of the courts of Europe during the past three-quarters of a century who had not heard of the value and the splendor of the Esterhazy jewels. It appears that near the close of the last century Nicholas, Prince Esterhazy, assisted at the crowning of Francis II. as King of Hungary. He was then captain of the Guard of Honor, which was composed of twenty-four nobles and princes of inferior rank, and on this occasion first appeared in his ornaments of precious stones. The Prince, not content with the usual decorations belonging to his rank and his corps, transformed all parts of his equipments which were of metal into open gold-work incrusted with gems. The effect was so beautiful as to stimulate the Prince to continue and complete his designs in a magnificent manner. And therefore he sought far and wide for the finest gems to adorn his person.

This passion for collecting and decorating soon ripened into a mania, and developed a prodigality greater than the Curii or Fabricii ever dreamed of. Ample means were at hand to foster this love of magnificence, for the Prince was feudal proprietor of a third of Hungary, being possessor of thirty-three manors, and lord of seventeen grand seignories.

The uniform of his rank as general of Hungarian huzzars, composed of jacket, pelisse, and pantaloons, was woven with pearls of the finest description; and among the multitudes of gems which formed the decorations were fifty thousand fine diamonds of the brilliant form. The weight of these mantles of magnificence was more than one man could endure for a length of time; and its profusion of ornament recalled the barbaric splendor of Lollia Paulina as she appeared at the banquet of Caligula. Gems of all colors and varieties were employed by the Prince, and many fine rubies, emeralds, and topazes were made use of. The most valued and the most delicately formed of all his ornaments was the aigrette of diamonds which replaced the ordinary plumes on his huzzar cap. It was called the most beautiful jewel in the universe. These artificial plumes, which flashed like flames of fire, contained five thousand diamonds of the purest transparency and most beautiful colors. Their weight amounted to one pound and a half avoirdupois. Around the huzzar cap were placed a wreath and a band, over which were ranged, in many rows, the finest and most brilliant pearls. The sword and scabbard were incrusted with the rarest brilliants. The broad band which hung over the shoulder to the belt was a remarkable article of workmanship. It was a simple band covered with fine pearls and the most precious diamonds, one of which, at the shoulder, was valued at 20,000 livres and another at the waist at 12,000 livres. Besides these ornaments he had for decorations six orders,—of the Toison d’Or, of the Bath, Saint Andrew, and others, all constructed of unequalled magnificence.

These costumes were worn by the Princes Nicholas and Paul at the coronation of Francis II., of George IV., of William IV., of Victoria, and of the Emperors of Russia and Austria; and were the themes of admiration, even among the glittering uniforms of higher ranks. But finally, by the fatality that attends collections of all that is beautiful on the earth, there came a change in the fortunes of the heir of Esterhazy. Paul, the last Prince, died some years ago harassed with debts. His estates were hypothecated; but his jewels passed into the hands of his creditors, and many of them were sent to London to be separated and sold. Since then most of the beautiful gems, which sparkled so brilliantly in former times in the courts of Europe, have been scattered over the world, and their identity lost, their history forgotten.

There is a very beautiful diamond of thirty-six karats owned in Holland, but its history we have not learned.

The famous crown of St. Stephen of Hungary, which disappeared during the Revolution of 1848, is said not to have any diamonds among its gems. Whether the absence of this stone is due to the extreme antiquity or to the whims of the constructors of the crown, we are unable to state.

The late Duke of Brunswick had before his death a marvellous collection of diamonds, partly acquired in gratification of his eccentric tastes and partly obtained by inheritance. Among the latter was the famous Cumberland diamond of thirty-two karats, which had descended to the heir of the House of Hanover. We have not been able to obtain a description of these treasures, nor can we learn of their disposition by the remarkable will of their late possessor.

Among the church regalia of Catholic Europe, and the offerings presented in past times to the various shrines of the saints of their religion, are yet preserved many gems of great beauty and value, and among them a great number of diamonds. Some of them have been stripped during the ravages of war, or by the iconoclastic fury of civil disturbances; and the pious monks have, in instances, restored their loss by the substitution of paste, which has pleased the pilgrim’s eye quite as well. For instance, the celebrated shrine of the Three Magi at Cologne has been despoiled of a great part of its vast treasures. And the skulls of the kings, inscribed with their names—Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar—written in rubies, were once crowned with gold diadems, resplendent with brilliant gems, now replaced by silver, gilt, and paste, or imitations. The custodians of the relics and jewels still assert, through pious fraud or a convenient ignorance, that their value amounts to 6,000,000 francs.

Catholicism, when it had the means, spared no expense in decorating its shrines and beautifying its relics. It well understood the effect of the glitter of gold and the brilliancy of gems upon the human imagination. The examples of this barbaric and yet cultivated taste are to be seen in all parts of Europe. Relics and insignia were not only lavishly adorned, like the Remonstrance at Prague with its 6,666 diamonds, but the bones of their saints were committed to the earth ornamented with costly gems, like those of Cardinal Borromeo interred at Milan two hundred years ago. The shrine of Loretto in Italy has been the most favored of all in Europe in attracting gifts from the rich and powerful as well as from the sick and the conscience-stricken. If reports are true, it has been and now is the receptacle of many of the most beautiful treasures of the mineral kingdom. As its history is not generally known, we will briefly allude to it, and give a still briefer description of its jewels.

Casa Santa denotes the chapel of the Holy Virgin at Loretto in Italy. Its chief room is the chamber in which the Blessed Virgin is said to have been born, where she was betrothed to Joseph, where the angel saluted her, and where the Holy Ghost overshadowed her, etc. Tradition says it was carried, in May, 1291, through the air by angels from Galilee to Tersato in Dalmatia, and four and a half years afterwards was taken to Italy and set down in a wood in the district of Recanati, a thousand paces from the sea.

Strange to relate, it was more than two hundred years before any author in that country took any notice of the event or of the building. It was, when first brought to notice, simply a house of one room; but as religious enthusiasm became excited it also became necessary to repair its decayed condition and improve its appearance. Therefore, Clement VII. caused a vaulted roof to be placed upon it and new foundations to support its tottering walls. At a later period it was completely encased in the finest Carrara marble, under the directions of the most celebrated sculptors of the age and during the pontificates of Leo X., Paul III., and Gregory XIII. The edifice which encloses the chamber within its spacious walls was designed by Bramante, and its sculptures were designed and executed by the most famous artists. This is composed of Istrian stone resembling the Travertine stone so much used at Rome.

Within the ancient chamber, which is regarded as one of the holiest of all the holy precincts known, stands the sacred image, called the Great Madonna, five feet high, made of cedar, and carved, as tradition says, by St. Luke, who was a carver as well as a physician. Upon her head is placed a triple crown of gold, enriched with diamonds and pearls, a gift from Louis XIII. of France. Over her shoulders an ample robe is cast, glittering with jewels of all descriptions and said to be of inestimable price.

The niche in which the image is placed is also decorated with gems, and among them are seventy-one of the finest of the Bohemian topazes [quartz].

Adjoining the Virgin on the right side appears a statue of an angel cast in pure gold. This is also profusely enriched with diamonds and other gems. Some of these, which are said to have cost 50,000 ducats, were the offering of Eleanora of the House of Este, the Queen of King James II. of England, when she sought for the intercession of the Virgin to grant her an heir. The Pretender to the British Crown was born not long after, to the delight of all those who believed in miraculous intervention.

On the left side of the Virgin a silver statue of an angel is placed, and still further on the right appears another costly image. This last was the gift of Louis XIII. of France, in gratitude for the birth of the Dauphin, afterwards “Le Grand Monarque,” Louis XIV.

Seven lamps of solid gold are continually burning with a sacred flame before the image of the Virgin, and other parts of the room are illuminated with thirty-seven silver lamps.

Although many of the reports concerning the valuables belonging to this famous shrine are probably fiction, there is no doubt of the immense value of the gems and jewels that have been presented to it. The donations to the wealth of this famous shrine have been given from all parts of the world where the Catholic religion has been venerated. And all classes, both rich and poor, have zealously invoked the blessing of the mysterious spirit by their liberal bequests.

The rich Abbey of St. Denys, before the Revolution, is said to have possessed a rare and costly assemblage of gems, jewels, and jewelled relics. They were reported to have been the accumulation of many centuries, dating back to the Carlovingian kings.

Among them were said to have been valuable presents from the Emperors of Byzantium. But this is doubtful, for the Greeks despised Catholicism and the Crusaders. There may have been, and probably were, fine gems of various kinds from the spoils obtained by the Franks in the conquest of Constantinople. There is no doubt, however, as to the richness of the works of mediæval art; for we find sufficient evidence in the old work of Dom Doublet’s, “Tresor of St. Denys,” although the collection itself has long since been dispersed and almost forgotten.

The iconoclastic fury of the Revolution collected many of the treasures of this Abbey, with those of other chapels of Paris, and offered them at public sale in 1794. It is said that this collection embraced a great quantity of precious stones,—rubies, topazes, sapphires, etc.,—both in the rough crystal and rudely cut, thus proving their Oriental origin. It is also stated that this much-to-be-lamented assemblage of beautiful things brought but 80,000 francs.

CHAPTER XII.
CUTTING OF THE DIAMOND.

The art of polishing the diamond was discovered by man at an earlier age than history has generally ascribed to it. Positive evidence, however, is wanting as to exact dates; and the proof is chiefly presumptive. However, there is no doubt but that it was far anterior to the times when Berquen announced his improvements on the process. We are quite willing to admit that the process of abrading the diamond against diamond was really discovered by the native of Bruges; but we cannot entertain the idea that the Hindoos were too stupid to pulverize the diamond and use its powder in polishing the gems. The natives had made use of powdered corundum in the earliest days, and it is preposterous not to admit they pulverized the diamond also.

Most of the gems of antiquity, whether rubies or diamonds, are cut rudely; and often, with the latter gem, the natural faces of the crystal are alone polished. Tavernier found that the native Hindoos polished the natural faces of the crystal if it was clear, and covered the flawed and the defective with facets to disguise them. And so common was this practice, that the traveller was always suspicious of the quality of the stone, whenever it was offered to him cut in this manner.

The improvement with many of these diamonds is so slight, that we consider the fact to be one of the reasons why certain natural crystals, like those in the crown and clasp of Charlemagne, for instance, were left in their rough state; the advantage derived from cutting not being equal to the time and labor expended.

It is true that we have no direct evidence of the cutting of the diamond in ancient times, and those that have descended to us from undoubted early Roman periods are in the shape of natural crystals; but still there is indirect testimony bearing in favor of the view.

The ancient gem engravers were wont to use splinters of broken diamonds in their labors upon various kinds of gems; and they probably powdered the adamas, as well as varieties of corundum, for the purpose of polishing the hard stones. Scarcity of the mineral, rather than ignorance of its properties, may have prevented its general use.

Janon de St. Laurent, in his work on engraving tools, maintains that the ancient instruments for the purpose of cutting gems were the same as the modern; and not only the wheel was used, but diamond dust was also employed in the process. There is no doubt that the wheel and other tools were in use in Asia for a long period before their adoption by the nations on the Mediterranean. So far as we know, Persia was the birthplace of gem engraving. Why are there not more examples of polished diamonds, if the process is so ancient? the reader may ask. We may in part answer this question by saying, that the process of cutting regular facets on the gems was not early known, or the custom adopted; and, the polishing being so difficult, that the lapidaries were content to polish the natural faces only. Polished crystals of diamonds of this character have descended to us from early times, and other examples are to be seen in ancient jewels. So little beauty was obtained by this polishing, that not much was gained in the vast labor required; and the native crystals were often used without any aid from the lapidary. We may see them in their rough crystalline forms in the crowns of the Gothic princes, the Iron Crown of Italy, and the ornaments of Charlemagne, besides other relics of ancient and even mediæval times.

This custom of using the rough gems prevailed to some extent in recent times; and De Laet states that as late as the middle of the seventeenth century rough spinels were preferred to the cut for ornamentation. However, we will briefly allude to one or two instances in history, which lead the reader to infer that the diamond received a definite polish at an early day. Chrysostom, an authentic writer of the fourth century, in describing the magnificence of the Greek emperors at Byzantium, mentions the dazzling splendor of the diamonds scintillating by agitation. If the historian does not use this description for the gems in general, we may infer that the diamonds had been polished; since the unpolished stones do not exhibit much, if any, play of the prismatic hues. The maxim, “diamond cut diamond,” is of ancient origin, and may perhaps be referred to the saying in vogue among the Greeks as early as the seventh century, “that for the purpose of cutting diamonds, a diamond was most effectual.”

The accounts of the Oriental historians concerning the fêtes of Timour in the fourteenth century, where diamonds were showered in profusion upon the guests, leave no doubts as to the art of polishing the gem as early as that period.

The inventory of the joyaux belonging to the Duc d’Anjou, in 1360, shows that diamonds were then cut, although rudely. It makes special mention of several diamonds, and one in particular set in a reliquary, and cut in escutcheon. Other polished diamonds are described in the account given of the splendid entertainment given at the Louvre, by the Duke of Burgundy, to the King and Court of France.

There is also evidence to prove that diamond lapidaries were at work in Paris, when Berquen came to reside there. However, it was not until 1475, after Berquen returned to his native city, Bruges, that the mode of polishing diamonds by direct abrasion became known in Europe. And when Charles the Bold intrusted the three famous gems to his skill, and rewarded him with 3,000 ducats for his labor, the name of Berquen became famous and widespread throughout Europe.

Nearly two centuries after this success, Cardinal Mazarin attempted to establish the business of diamond-cutting in Paris, and confided to the lapidaries he had invited to reside there, twelve of the finest diamonds belonging to the Crown to be recut. These gems, from their beauty, and the circumstance of cutting, were called the twelve Mazarins. History has neglected to record the fate of these magnificent gems save one. In the inventory of the French jewels in 1791, there is the solitary description, “the tenth Mazarin.” The others have disappeared.

The Cardinal made every attempt to establish the favorite project on a firm basis; but they were in vain; for the Dutch marine had complete control of most of the exports of India, and decided in favor of Amsterdam. Moreover, the establishment of the diamond trade in Holland was one of the indirect results of the revocation of the Edict of Nantes, and it was controlled by Israelite refugees from France. The business gradually languished at Paris, and of the seventy-five diamond-cutters of Mazarin’s industry, but five were left in 1775; and soon after this, in spite of individual efforts and influences, it ceased altogether. Even at the recent period of 1852, Paris did not possess a single diamond-cutter. At this time M. Philippe resolved to make the attempt to revive the good intentions of Mazarin, and has thus far succeeded well. But, in spite of all the English and French opposition, the diamond trade is still controlled by the Amsterdam Jews, several thousand of whom are engaged in the business of cutting the stones.

Diamond-cutting was also practised to some extent in London during the last century and the early part of this; but concerning it we have learned but few particulars. It was conducted on strict mathematical principles, however; and the gems cut during this time in London are eagerly sought for by amateurs, under the name of the “Old English Style.” The brilliants of Ralph Potter, cut at the commencement of this century, are by far the finest exponents of the art as well as of the natural powers of the gem. Since the discovery of the African mines the London establishments have been actively engaged, and we also learn that branches of the business have been located in other cities of England.

The process of diamond-cutting is a very simple matter to those acquainted with the nature of the gem. To cut the facets, two stones are cemented on two sticks and rubbed against each other until a facet is cut; then the position of one of the stones is changed, and another flat surface cut. The process is thus continued until the gem is faceted all over, at the expense, however, of the other stone, which does most of the cutting. After the facets are cut, and a definite form given to the stone, the gem is placed in the hands of the polisher, who fastens it in solder, and then places it upon a small steel disk which revolves horizontally with a rapidity of 1,500 to 3,000 times a minute. This disk is moistened with diamond powder mixed with oil, and one facet is polished at a time. The diamond-cutting proper is a rapid operation; but the polishing is slow and tedious. One cutter can generally furnish sufficient work for four or five polishers.

There are a number of forms adopted by the lapidaries for these gems, but the two principal ones are the brilliant and the rose. The first pattern, which was invented in Europe in the seventeenth century, is perhaps the best of all to call forth the powers of the gem. The second is of unknown age, and was practised by the Hindoos in ancient times. It affords the largest beams of light for the weight, but it lacks in colored reflections when compared with the brilliant.

For the perfection of the rainbow play of hues, it is essential that the facets of the superior and inferior parts of the stone should correspond in exact proportions and at fixed distances, so as to multiply the reflections and refractions, and produce the colors of the prismatic spectrum. Therefore the perfect cutting of the diamond is a mathematical problem, governed by rigid laws.

All limpid and white gems must be cut according to this rule, but in case of colored stones the case is far different; for perfection of color is to be attained, and brilliancy is a secondary thought. Therefore a fine ruby or sapphire may be decidedly thin in form, and yet be a gem of great beauty and value. It is very rare we obtain the full perfection of brilliancy and color in the colored gems; for generally the depth of the finest hues prevents a display of the refractive powers of the stone.

The process of rifting diamonds by splitting them in their cleavage planes was known long ago to the Hindoos; but, strange to say, it was forgotten by modern lapidaries until revived by Wollaston not many years ago. By this means masses of the crystal may be removed to escape a flaw or remove a spot, and yet preserve material that may be utilized, and which would have been lost by the process of grinding away the exterior.

Some diamonds of the spheroidal form are deficient in cleavage planes, and are quite impracticable for cutting; and the fact of the impossibility of polishing them is sufficient proof of their peculiar origin, and that their form is not due to aqueous action.

Others, known as bort, seem to be of concentric arrangement, as though crystallization radiated from the centre; and it is very difficult to polish them. The Hindoos avail themselves of this natural cleavage, and form table diamonds by adroitly striking along one of the planes of the stone with a sharp-edged tool, thereby separating the layers of the gem as the slate is rifted by the miner.

The operation, which seems so simple, really requires considerable skill and much of that acquired instinct or tact which is best exhibited by our Western Indians, who chip, with marvellous rapidity and certainty, a glass bottle into symmetrical arrow-heads. This method of reducing diamonds by cleavage was early known to the Hindoos, and is mentioned by Tavernier in an unmistakable manner in his published travels.

The process of reduction by this means is very rapidly accomplished by the skilful workman. At a glance he ascertains the direction of the laminæ, which remind one of the layers of the onion, and then cuts a small notch with another diamond in the place he selects. In this minute rift he places the edge of his blunt steel knife, and, tapping the back of it with a light iron rod, the diamond is split with perfect ease. By this process flaws and imperfections in the external layers of the stone are removed without delay. In reducing the natural diamond to a regular form much of its substance is lost, and sometimes as much as one half of the weight of the stone. This loss, however, depends greatly upon the natural form of the crystal. The perfect octahedrons lose but one fifth of their weight when transformed into the shape of the brilliant; but the rhombohedrons lose over one third in taking the same form.

The following will give the reader an idea of the losses of the rough stones when converted into fine gems. However, it must be remembered that these great stones are generally of irregular shape and are rarely of fine crystalline forms. The Mogul weighed in the rough 780¹⁄₂ karats, but was reduced in cutting to 279⁹⁄₁₆ karats. The Regent weighed 410 karats, reduced to 136¹⁴⁄₁₆ karats. The Koh-i-noor weighed 186¹⁄₂ karats, reduced to 102¹⁄₂. L’Etoile du Sud, 254¹⁄₂ karats, reduced to 124⁴⁄₁₆.

The process of cutting diamonds of large size is always attended with risk, and is necessarily a costly operation. The Regent cost in cutting $25,000, and occupied two years’ time. The Star of the South, which was cut by Coster, occupied but ninety days, and the Koh-i-noor only thirty-eight working days. This great feat in diamond-cutting was performed by the ablest of the Holland lapidaries, with the aid of steam power. Although the time expended was less than forty days, yet the cost of cutting is said to have been $40,000, which sum was lessened by the sale of the rifted fragments.

The Oriental lapidaries, destitute of mechanical appliances of any considerable aid, consumed years in cutting some of the paragons of India. This condition of affairs will explain the reason why the Armenian lapidaries asked the immense sum of $80,000 to cut the slab of diamond weighing 130 karats, which was captured by the Sultan of Persia at Coocha, in 1832.

The process of diamond-cutting has within a few years been established in the United States, and is due to the energy and superior inventive talent of Mr. Henry D. Morse, of Boston. This gentleman conceived the idea of arranging a machine for the cutting and polishing of these gems, to enable the American jewellers to have their work performed at home, instead of sending it to Europe.

While engaged in perfecting his appliances, chance threw in his way an itinerant vendor of porcelain, who had in former years served as laborer in the diamond ateliers of Amsterdam. The sight of the rough gems and the apparatus recalled to the Jew the scenes of his youth, and awakened a desire of renewing his former occupation; and he offered to perform the part of diamond-cutter. But, as the process was carefully considered, it was discovered that the Jew could only cut the facets of the diamond, and the art of the subsequent polishing he did not understand. It seemed strange that an artisan who possessed the rare ability to tell at a glance how large a gem the stone would cut, how to avoid internal imperfections, and how to take advantage of its cleavage planes, could not polish the facets after he had cut them. But such was the fact; for the two processes of cutting and polishing are widely different, and require separate instruction. However, the deficiency was soon supplied by an acquaintance, who was induced to leave Holland and act as polisher in the American diamond adventure.

The establishment was now complete, but the business was at first confined to recutting and repolishing gems that had been damaged by long use or accident. The inventive genius of Mr. Morse made several important changes in the machinery required by the lapidary, and displaced the rude and cumbersome apparatus of the old system. At first but two or three men were employed; but after the discovery of the South African diamond mines, the rough gems imported to this country soon furnished material for a more extensive establishment than was at first contemplated; and so the workshop was enlarged, and the workmen increased, until twenty-four polishing wheels were put in operation by steam power, and a force of thirty persons employed in the various parts of the process. At first none but foreigners were employed in the labor; but Mr. Morse believed that American ingenuity could master all the difficulties of the process, and finally succeeded in educating a corps of workmen who soon proved to be far superior to any of the artisans imported from the diamond-cutting establishments of Amsterdam. Now the atelier of Mr. Morse may be considered as essentially American both in its artists and its arrangements.

Many fine gems of large size have been polished by Mr. Morse, and among them four of the great weight of fifty karats each. And very recently he has ventured to attempt the cutting of a great diamond from South Africa, weighing one hundred and twenty-five karats. The operation was a successful one, and after three and a half months’ labor a beautiful gem of seventy-seven karats weight was obtained, which is greatly admired by amateurs and experts, not only on account of the rare beauty and perfection of the mineral itself, but also as a remarkable specimen of workmanship in shaping its present form.

The process of cutting the diamond is divided at Amsterdam into several distinct branches, and workmen are educated to perform one part, but not another. Thus the cleaving, the cutting, and the polishing have special operators, who become expert in performing well the parts assigned to them without attempting the others.

This ceremony and care adopted by the Jews has undoubtedly produced skilful workmen; but we see no reason why all the parts may not be perfectly acquired by an intelligent mechanic. The art of cleavage, however, requires tact, and ought to include some knowledge of mineralogy.

For the particulars of the art of diamond-cutting, we will refer our readers to the interesting chapters by Jeffries, Mawe, and Barbot; but we will, however, briefly mention some of the forms adopted for the diamond, and how they are produced.

The table and the rose patterns were the first regular forms adopted by the lapidaries. The first was simply the top of the stone ground flat with a corresponding flat bottom of less area, with its four upper and lower sides parallel to each other. As the light passed through the stone without much refraction, the beauty of the mineral was not developed by this pattern.

It has been stated that the rose shape was invented in Paris under the auspices of Cardinal Mazarin, but Tavernier describes the diamonds of Aurungzeb of India as being of the rose-cut. Therefore we must give a more ancient date to the pattern than Mazarin’s day. The form of the rose-cut is simply that of a hemisphere covered with small facets. Its flattened base is therefore admirably adapted for incrustation work, and the foil on which it is generally set serves as a refracting mirror for the entering rays of light.

The rose pattern has several names which indicate the number of facets which they may bear. If it has but twelve or less facets it is called an Antwerp rose; if but eighteen or twenty it is a semi-Holland, and a Holland rose if it bears twenty-four facets. At the present time these gems are not in much demand, unless for incrustation work, for which they are superior both in effect and in adaptability to the surface of the object to be ornamented.

The form which appears to exhibit the splendors of the gem to the best advantage is that known as the brilliant, and is rightly named from its effects. It was discovered in Italy in the latter part of the seventeenth century by Peruzzi of Venice, which city was then one of the chief gem marts of the world. The conclusions which led to the adoption of the shape were derived from experiments upon colored stones. This form of the brilliant is that of the ancient deep table modified by receiving thirty-two facets above and twenty-four below its girdle. The great relative depth of the gem, aided by the numerous facets of the sides, appears to increase the natural refractive power of the stone by confining, as it were, the rays of light inside of it.

Another pattern, called the brilliolette, shows the beautiful qualities of the gem to great advantage. It is formed like two rose diamonds joined together at the base; or may be flattened and elongated like the almond, and faceted all over with small facets. This is the form of the Sancy, and should have been given to the Koh-i-noor and the Star of the South. The Austrian yellow diamond is of this pattern, and was probably cut in India, but when and where is still a mystery. And it is thought that the famous twelve Mazarins were also cut after this shape.

The star pattern, which was invented by Caire, is but little used at the present time.

CHAPTER XIII.
TESTING OF THE DIAMOND, ETC.

The testing of the diamond is generally an easy matter to the expert, but the merchant and the amateur are often unable to decide quickly concerning the character of a gem that may be offered to them. The learned Abbé Haüy was often called in consultation upon matters of this kind, and even appeared in court as an expert of diamonds. Fortunately, the methods of ascertaining the diamond beyond a doubt are now so easy and numerous that few attempts are made like those of the last century, when white topazes and zircons were sold or substituted for diamonds.

We may be permitted to say that the first and surest test of the gem is that of hardness, and that the diamond scratches all other substances with ease. The application of this test is not always made with facility, but a little practice with a rough crystal of diamond will soon enable the experimenter to perform it satisfactorily. In performing the test for hardness for all gems it is well to be provided with a fine English file, and splinters of quartz, topaz, and sapphire. The file, adroitly applied, will detect the character of gems below the quartz in hardness, and the splinters above mentioned will determine all others but the diamond.

In applying these tests, it is well to touch the middle of a facet, if the gem be polished, and remember that the edges of many of the gems are very brittle. The diamond, for instance, although it is so very hard when its surface is directly tested, yet its thin edges, when cut into a gem, are broken down with the greatest ease; therefore the test of hardness should be applied to the polished face of the stone.

But when the stone has been polished and set in such a manner that the test of hardness cannot be easily applied, then the easiest method of distinguishing its character is to expose it to the rays of artificial light and observe their effects. If the stone, when placed at a certain distance from the candle, flashes out the prismatic hues in a marked manner, then the observer may safely conclude that the object is either a diamond or one of the artificial gems known as strass. To distinguish them by means of the eye alone will be a difficult task, for both possess very high refractive powers and exhibit remarkable displays of the prismatic hues; but the application of a fragment of diamond, sapphire, or topaz to the object will at once make known its character, and even the test of the steel file will betray the softness of the glass.

The transparent zircons closely approach the diamond in brilliancy, and are among the rarest of gems; in fact, a fine specimen of perfect purity would be worth more to the amateur than a diamond of equal weight. The pure yellow are declared by King to be among the rarest and most beautiful of gems on account of their remarkable brilliancy and lustre. He also states that they are seldom found above two karats in weight.

The white zircon, which resembles the diamond so closely, is always minute and rarely above one karat in size. All that are known in commerce come from Matura, in Ceylon, and are sometimes called Matura diamonds. In times past they were in great demand for incrustation work of watches and jewelry, for when cut in the form of roses and set upon brilliant foil they could not be easily detected by the eye from the diamond. At the present day they are seldom seen in commerce, but whether from scarcity, or from an improvement in the ideas of honor in the jewellers, we are unable to state. We know, however, that they are still mined by the natives of Ceylon, and are used in Asia for ornamental purposes. The white spinel is sometimes mistaken for the adamas; but its inferiority in hardness and its want of the prismatic hues render its detection easy. The white topaz, when of two or three karats weight, resembles the diamond in the rough very closely, especially when in the modified or globular forms of crystallization. The degree of specific gravity is exactly the same; but the test of hardness and the want of the prismatic display serve to dispel all doubts as to its nature. Neither of these gems, nor the white sapphire, has that peculiar sharp flash of the diamond which is known as the adamantine eclat. It has been stated by Hoppè that some of the Brazilian diamonds do not exhibit any more play of color when cut than rock crystal; but we have no doubt but that the writer is in error, and has probably been deceived by some of the white spinels or topazes which are sometimes found in the diamond mines of Brazil and are of great brilliancy.

To estimate the value of a rough diamond and ascertain its purity is often a difficult task, and one that requires both education and tact. For the surface of the natural gem, especially the modified and spheroidal crystals, is generally dull and chatoyant. This singular appearance, which has been erroneously represented as a thin crust, is in reality produced by the salient edges of the laminæ of which the stone is composed. The same or a similar effect may be artificially produced in the polished diamond by heating it to a white heat, as has been seen in the diamonds injured in the great fires of Hamburg and Chicago.

Barbot, the French jeweller, declared that he had discovered a means by which the apparent rough, translucent coating could be changed into perfect transparency so as to give a clear view of the condition of the interior. This statement, however, is very much doubted by lapidaries.

When the rough diamond is placed in turpentine, alcohol, or even water, it appears more transparent than before and like a bubble of air. We have therefore sometimes thought that Barbot had really discovered some fluid of high refractive power, immersed in which the rough diamond became transparent. For it is a well-established fact known among chemists, that rough gems of a lower refractive power, like sapphire, chrysoberyl, spinel, etc., if placed in a fluid possessing an equal refractive energy, like that of muriate of antimony, become clear, and the observer is enabled to look through them. This discovery strengthens Barbot’s statement and places it within the possibilities; but as yet we know of no fluid that possesses a refractive power equal to the diamond. Topaz, emerald, and other gems of low refractive power can be readily examined by using the oil of cassia, which has the refractive energy of 1.64.

The rough diamonds often exhibit various colors, but generally of faint tints. Sometimes the hue is not perfectly distributed throughout the stone, but may be confined to a part of it, as in the sapphire, or even in one of its laminæ. It is a singular fact that the external coverings of the mineral often contain the shades which render the rough gem of a disagreeable hue, and which may be made to disappear by the process of cutting. Therefore, it sometimes requires experience and tact to determine the value of a rough diamond which possesses a decided hue. However, those stones which exhibit a greenish or reddish color are considered safe stones for investment, and will develop into superior gems after cutting. The bluish and the blackish are thought to be harder than the others; while the yellowish and grayish colors indicate inferior stones. The brownish and yellowish hues may disappear in process of cutting, but there is greater uncertainty in these shades than in the others. Sometimes a stone which promises to yield a perfectly white gem, after cutting turns out to be of a decided disagreeable tinge. Therefore the cutting of a rough diamond is often attended with some hazard.

The Hindoos have a practice of examining their stones before purchase by placing them in an aperture in the wall, with a lighted lamp in the rear. And to ascertain their color they take them under the cover of a tree thick with foliage, where the verdure of the shade quickly reveals any other tinge, especially the bluish. It is quite difficult to distinguish the snow-white, except by contrast. The officers of the Junta Diamontina, in Brazil, have a rough way of testing the native diamonds from quartz, white topaz, and spinel, by rubbing them together close to the ear. The sharp tone which is thus produced is characteristic, but the test requires a keen and practised ear.

Specific gravity is one of the best tests for determining the nature of polished stones. By this means some of the precious minerals can be detected with ease, like the zircon and the emerald, notwithstanding their color. But when applied to the diamond the experimenter should remember that its weight is exactly that of the white topaz; yet to distinguish them, the degree of hardness or the phenomena of electricity will at once enable the expert to discriminate with ease and without a doubt. For the best methods of ascertaining the specific gravity of the stones, we must refer the reader to elementary works on chemistry and physics.

The test of its electrical phenomena is an important one, as one can thereby almost instantly detect it from other gems, especially the white topaz. When rubbed it exhibits vitreous electricity like glass, but loses it in a very few moments.

Another curious phenomenon, called single refraction, enables the observer to distinguish the mineral from all other gems except the garnet and spinel, the others having double refraction, or, in other words, giving a double image of a candle-light when it is viewed through their facets.

For the purpose of observing this phenomenon, Sir David Brewster invented an instrument which he called a lithoscope. It consisted of a small glass prism which moved around a fixed joint so that the lower surface of it could be laid upon the surface, or a facet of the stone to be examined. In this position, the two surfaces being parallel, the image reflected from the lower surface of the prism would coincide with that reflected from the surface of the stone. A drop of the oil of cassia or of sulphuret of carbon is placed between the prism and the facet, and then the observer turns a screw to raise the prism a little round its joint. The effect of this is to separate the image of a light or a small luminous aperture as given by the prism from that given by the facet; and the difference in the intensity and the color of these two images is an infallible indication of the nature of the stone. The image from the diamond will be many times brighter than that reflected from the face of the prism when testing any of the other precious stones.

A simpler mode is sometimes adopted by experts, but it requires some dexterity to exhibit the property. The method is this: the diamond is held up to the eye, and a needle point or a small hole pierced in a card is looked at. If the object is seen double, as if there were two needle points or two holes, then the stone examined is not a diamond, as but one aperture should be seen.

With the aid of the tourmaline tongs, however, we have an easier method—subject to a few exceptions—of detecting the properties of refraction of all gems even when they have been cut. The transparent tourmaline, when cut in thin plates parallel to the axes of its natural crystals, possesses the strange and extraordinary power of extinguishing or causing to disappear one of the rays of polarized light, while the other is preserved. Therefore, when a body possessing single refraction, although perfectly transparent, is placed between the two thin slices of tourmaline composing the tourmaline tongs or polariscope, no light passes through; the instrument does not afford the least glimmer of a ray of light. But when the transparent body interposed in the polariscope is of double refraction, light passes through as if by magic.

When the gem has been cut for ornamental purposes it is often difficult to adjust the faces of it to the plates of the polariscope. Then recourse may be had to the use of a glass cell containing a fluid of a high refractive power, like the oil of cassia, turpentine, sulphuret of carbon, etc. The stone immersed in these fluids admits the light in all directions, and is then easily viewed through the plates of the instrument. These fluids, however, are not of sufficiently high refractive powers to do justice to the diamond and the zircon, but they answer admirably for all gems of a less refractive power, like the varieties of sapphire, spinel, topaz, garnet, tourmaline, emerald, etc.

The tourmaline tongs furnish the expert with a rapid and easy method of detecting many of the gems by reason of the phenomena of their refraction. But the experimentalist must be on his guard lest he pronounce substances to be of double when they really possess but single refraction. Glass has a tendency to crystalline regularity when heated and cooled suddenly, and may therefore acquire the property of polarizing the ray that passes the first plate of tourmaline and dispose of a part of that which passes the second. Certain minerals of the cubic system produce the same result by reason of a certain rare but forced arrangement; and some crystals, like the topaz, when cut in a certain direction to their optical axes cease to exhibit the phenomena of double refraction.

One of the chief tests used by the jewellers of olden times to distinguish the diamond was the test of the tincture. This tincture was a varnish made of ivory black and mastic, and when applied to the back of the diamond seemed to increase its lustre, while other gems were impaired in their natural effects. Modern investigators, however, have shown that this procedure is a fallacious one, and is in reality one of the absurd traditions which have been attached to the gem from early times, like some of the supposed spiritual properties.

A perfect diamond must stand the tests for purity, faultlessness, and transparency, and when these are carefully applied to the stone perfect gems will be found to be very rare.

As we have said before, the diamond is the foulest of gems, and is exceedingly liable to be injured by faults, such as are described in the technical terms of the jewellers as ashes, gray spots, rusty places, flaws, cavities, fissures, veins, feathers, foreign bodies, wavy and vitreous spots. Very few diamonds can stand the test of the microscope and be pronounced perfect. Still these microscopic faults are not to be considered in the commerce of the gem, but only in the study of its origin and nature. The jeweller may properly pronounce perfect the gem whose faults cannot be detected by the human eye. Even the magnificent Regent has one small foul speck in it, according to Jeffries; and Sir David Brewster found in the Koh-i-noor three specks, or rather cavities, in its central portion, which appeared to view in more or less distinctness according as the light reached them.

After a diamond has been cut it is not easy to ascertain its degree of perfection without careful examination, and this occupies considerable time. And gems which appear at first glance to be pure and perfect are often found to be defective after examination.

Babinet, of the French Institute, adopted the following method to study the effects of the diamond, and it was his intention to apply the test during his leisure moments to the principal diamonds in France; but other important labors diverted him from his purpose. He pierced a hole in a white card, a little larger than the diamond to be examined, and then passed a ray of sunlight or of the electric lamp through this hole. In the pathway of this ray, at a certain distance from the hole behind the card, he placed the diamond so that the ray of light fell upon the anterior surface of the stone. The rays reflected from this anterior surface, or, in other words, the table of the diamond, and those which pass through the stone are reflected back on the card, where they exhibit a white image of the table surrounded by small bands iridescent with the prismatic colors. By this simple method Babinet found that if the diamond had been well cut the colors were considerable in number, were well separated, and equally spread around the white reflection of the table. As each of these bands indicates one of the lustres of the stone, it is easy to estimate them both in number, quality, and symmetry. Therefore the observer can not only detect the errors of the cutting of the gem, but decide upon the form best adapted for the stone.

The term used to express the weight of the diamond and all the gems is derived from the word Keration, a kind of vetch, whose seeds, being generally of a uniform weight, furnished the Orientals with the means of estimating the value of precious stones. It is supposed to represent the equivalent of four Troy grains, but by actual measurement the diamond karat weighs but 3¹⁄₃ Troy grains at the present day, and it may descend even lower in the scale, unless the unit be established by law. The history of the series of diminutions by which the karat has reached its present weight is obscure, but as the term is supposed to represent four Troy grains it should equal them in reality. That it is a mere conventional weight is shown by its variance in European countries, as well as in the gem-producing countries of Asia. In making use of the term to express the weight of precious stones we would suggest that it be written karat, as more in accordance with its derivation, and that the commonly accepted word carat be used when we wish to define the alloy of certain metals, like that of gold and silver coins.

Before proceeding to the subject of the valuation of diamonds, we will say a few words concerning the imitations produced by the skill of man. Many attempts at imitating the diamond have been made by experimentalists for a long time past, and much ingenuity shown by them. To those of our readers who desire to study especially these experiments we will refer them to the works of Silliman, Hare, Latour, Saix, Despretz, Dumas, Ebleman and Gaudin, Mohler, St. Clair, Deville, Gaunal, Becquerel, Joyce, Cagnard de la Tour, Mactear, Hannay, and many other well-known experimenters.

Despretz’s experiments, which were based upon certain combinations of carbon, are deserving of mention. The chemists have discovered that in combining sulphur and carbon a colorless liquid is produced resembling water, and apparently containing nothing but sulphur and carbon. Therefore, Despretz reasoned, if he could get rid of the sulphur by some manner, the carbon might be crystallized. And to obtain this result, the action of the volcanic battery offered the most plausible means. With the aid of this battery the experimenter really succeeded in obtaining on a thread of platina, passed through a solution containing carbon, some small crystalline depositions, which by their form and hardness seemed to be embryonic diamonds. But here the experiment ended. Nature refused to reveal her secrets.

The alchemists of the Middle Ages seeking the transformation of gold from baser metals, have been well represented by the chemists of the present century attempting to imitate the diamond. Philosophy and science have united their efforts in these fascinating experiments; but Nature still defies the most determined efforts of art in respect to the reproduction of the diamond.

The mineral appears to be an allotropic form of a simple elementary body which Nature offers to us with lavish hand. And when we consider the triumphs of chemistry, the process of transforming this element into the coveted form does not seem to be so very difficult to the casual thinker. But Nature is stubborn in revealing her simple acts. However, we are not without faith in these determined efforts of scientific skill; for we know that art now produces the brother of the diamond, graphite, at will. And we see that at the soda works at Aussig this form of carbon is obtained as a secondary product by the decomposition of cyanogen and its combinations. We do not, however, look forward with much pleasure to the realization of this idea; for success in producing the diamond will annihilate at a single blow an important article of commerce, and rob ornamentation and investment of one of its most desired objects.

Art, however, in its researches on this subject, has succeeded in producing a glass which, when cut, approaches very closely the brilliancy and prismatic display of the diamond. The artificial gems made from this glass, which is supposed to have thallium as a base, instead of lead, are really superior examples of art. “Nothing but glass,” is a phrase too often used contemptuously and unjustly; for these imitations are quite as charming as the adamas itself. In the flash of their rainbow hues, they surpass some of the great diamonds, like the Koh-i-noor; and in brilliancy they exceed all other gems. Their refraction reaches 2 on the established scale, while that of the diamond is reckoned at 2.4, and that of the sapphire, 1.79. They lack, however, hardness; and the effect of time dims their lustre. But this defect may yet be remedied; for the ancients made glass quite as hard as quartz. And when we come to examine those wonderful specimens of ancient glass, with their exquisite colorings, exhumed by General Di Cesnola in the Phœnician tombs of Cyprus, who will venture to establish a limit to the art of glass-making? Even within the past few years, a process has been discovered by which the elasticity and hardness of glass have been increased to a remarkable degree; and if the defect of brittleness can be overcome, a new era in glass-making will have been reached.

Artificial diamonds are often worn at the present day; and the fair wearer consoles herself with the hope that, when sunnier days come, the artificial will give place to the real. It will not be soon forgotten by the votaries of fashion, that the Duchesse de Berri, arriving in France, received for her bridal ornaments only the imitation, and that she wore them.

CHAPTER XIV.
VALUE OF THE DIAMOND.

The history of the commercial value of the diamond, extending back to a distant period of time, forms an interesting chapter for the philosopher as well as the merchant. It would appear that the gem had been comparatively independent of the caprice of fashion, and that it has had for many years a value quite as fixed as gold or silver. This comparative valuation only applies to the snow-white diamonds, and to those whose imperfections are not readily discernible to the naked eye.

In estimating the value of diamonds, Barbot divides their shades into fifteen degrees, as follows: In the first degree he places the rare diamonds which exhibit the vivid gleam like the flash of polished steel; second degree, snow-white, first water; third degree, white, first water; fourth degree, white, with faint shades, red, yellow, and blue; fifth degree, white, yellow, or green, second water; sixth degree, grayish-yellow or green, second water; seventh degree, orange yellow; eighth degree, translucent topaz yellow; ninth degree, translucent deep green; tenth degree, translucent brick-red; eleventh degree, translucent deep red; twelfth degree, quite opaque, dingy blue; thirteenth degree, quite opaque, deep bottle green; fourteenth degree, quite opaque, brown or blackish; fifteenth degree, quite opaque, black as jet.

In ancient times, the gem probably had no fixed commercial value, and was sought for as a curiosity or as a talisman. In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, the goldsmiths of Italy, which was then the richest country in the world, established a comparative valuation for the four precious stones, ruby, emerald, diamond, and sapphire. From these accounts we learn that the diamond of one karat was valued at 100 gold scudi, and that the emerald was estimated at 400, and the red sapphire, or ruby, at 800, or eight times the price of the adamas. These valuations, if we estimate the scudi at nine English shillings, make a diamond of one karat worth $225, and the ruby of the same weight at $1,800, or nearly two thousand dollars, a statement which is quite incredible.

In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries and even before these dates, Venice was the chief gem mart of Europe. Her merchants had control of a great part of the trade with the Eastern countries; and most of the Oriental luxuries passed through their hands. From the account of the auction sale, in the year 1606, of the effects of a diamond merchant in that city, we learn the value of diamonds of one karat weight at that time. They were then valued at £21 13s. 4d., which was an enormous sum, compared with the value of money at the present day.

In 1750, the price of the stone in Europe was $40 for one-karat gems. This was just before the discovery of the Brazilian mines. The sudden influx of the gems reduced the price shortly after to $5 per karat; but the market soon recovered from the panic, and in 1791, at the time the inventory of the French jewels was made, the price had arisen to $30 for the same class of diamonds. Since this period, the prices have varied, from the influences of the wars of Europe, sinking at the time of the disturbances of the Revolution of 1848, to $20 and $25 per karat. But after the year 1850, the price of the gem steadily advanced, and in 1865, its quotations were almost the same as that of Venice in 1606. This comparison, however, should not be made without remembering the vast difference in the value of money of the two periods.

The valuations of the diamond for more than a century past have been based upon the form of the brilliant, while those of the star, table, rose, and others, have been valued at lesser and sometimes almost nominal prices.

The price of the rose diamonds has been affected by the views of fashion for a long time, and at the present day we are unable to establish any fixed scale. We will, however, append the views of some of the gem experts as to the valuation of this pattern, during the past two centuries.

Robert de Berquen, in 1669, valued the rose cut

of 1 karat at 100 francs.

” 2 ” ” 500 ”

” 4 ” ” 1,500 ”

” 8 ” ” 6,000 ”

” 10 ” ” 9,000 ”

This estimate, however, was not founded upon any principle; and it was not until the celebrated Tavernier formed his rule for the valuation of the rose cut, that the diamond had any definite value. Tavernier, in 1692, took for an example a rose of one karat, of fine water, white, and of good form, and fixed the valuation at 150 francs, and for gems of greater weight multiplied this figure by the square of their weight. The justly celebrated jeweller and traveller also followed the same rule with fine diamonds that were not of regular form. The brilliant cut was not then known.

In 1858, in France, the comparative values were: for one karat, fine brilliant cut, 300 francs; for one karat, fine rose cut, 200 francs.

The following list has been kindly furnished me by Henry D. Morse, Esq., of Boston, as giving the value of diamonds in the United States at the present time, January, 1884. The prices have fluctuated considerably during the past year, and the estimates given are wholesale prices, and regarded as being quite low for fine stones:—

Lots averaging ¹⁄₂ karat each, $60 per karat.

” ” ³⁄₄ ” ” 80 ” ”

” ” 1 ” ” 100 ” ”

” ” 1¹⁄₄ ” ” 110 ” ”

” ” 1¹⁄₂ ” ” 125 ” ”

” ” 1³⁄₄ ” ” 145 ” ”

” ” 2 ” ” 175 ” ”

Above two karats the prices are not much increased per karat, because of their not being as much in demand. Stones of five karats and upwards, being very slow to sell, at the present time can be bought at $175 to $200 per karat, of the same qualities as the two-karat stones quoted above. Very extra white perfect stones, when well cut, bring, when sold singly or few at a time, from 20 to 25 per cent more than the prices quoted. The lower grades of stones are generally sold in lots, and the sizes do not make much difference in price. The larger they are the less desirable, and oftentimes stones of from five to ten karats are sold cheaper than stones of one to two karats; the price depending upon the shade of color and skill in cutting. Lots of this description can be bought for from $75 to $90 per karat. If the tinge is a little more decided they will bring but $60 per karat. The yellow diamonds even ranging as high as ten to twenty karats bring about $45 per karat. Flawy stones bring from $15 to $35 per karat, according to their color, size, and brilliancy. Fine rough stones of assorted sizes, varying from three to ten karats, bring from $30 to $45 per karat according to their shape and perfection. Smaller sizes are reckoned in value from $15 to $20 per karat. Cheaper grades and off-colored crystals are sold as low as $8 to $12 per karat. The bort diamonds vary in value; those coming from Africa bring but $1.50 per karat, while the same variety found in Brazil bring $6. The carbon variety of the best sizes bring about $20 per karat. Fifteen years ago the same mineral could be bought for $2.50 per karat; while the Brazilian bort was quoted at $9.

Of colored diamonds, those slightly tinged with various colors, especially the yellow and brown, were valued in London and Amsterdam, in 1872, as follows:—

Under 1 karat 30s. to £2 10s. per karat.

1 to 2 ” 40 ” 4 10 ” ”

2 ” 3 ” £3 ” 5 10 ” ”

The following account of Cape of Good Hope diamonds which were sold by auction at Covent Garden, February, 1872, may interest the reader in comparison with other sales at various periods of time:—

One white rough diamond, 9¹⁄₂ karats, £60; one slightly off color, 7¹⁄₄ karats, £37; a curious cabinet specimen of native diamond in matrix, £14, one large rough gem, drop shape, 14¹⁄₂ karats, £42. Among the cut diamonds the following were sold: a magnificent brilliant, 8 karats, 430 guineas; a fine yellow brilliant of great lustre, 7¹⁄₂ karats, 140 guineas; a brilliant of great spread and good water, about 7¹⁄₂ karats, 140 guineas; a large, lustrous brilliant of fine color weighing about 7 karats, 480 guineas; a court tiara of five graduated brilliant stars, 185 guineas; a brilliant necklace of forty graduated collets, £300.

The following sale by auction, in London, of some of the Imperial jewels belonging to the Empress Eugenie, may also interest the reader; and we have therefore thought proper to insert the account. It took place in July, 1872, at the rooms of Christie, Manson, & Co.:—

Lots 16 and 17. A bracelet, with forget-me-nots formed of turquoises and small diamonds, and another, with pearls and diamonds,—175 guineas. (Attenborough.)

22, 23. A heart-shaped locket, formed of bands of brilliants, and a pair of gold solitaires, with large diamond centres,—215 guineas. (Copeland.)

24. A very small keyless watch, with E. in diamonds, with gold chain, set with rubies and emeralds,—120 guineas. (Agnew.)

26. A chased gold snuff-box, the top set with flowers in brilliants, with the Pasha of Egypt’s cipher in brilliants on blue enamel,—165 guineas. (B. Benjamin.)

33. A brooch, with pendants, formed of five large turquoises and brilliants,—105 guineas. (Streeter.)

35. A brilliant brooch, with sprays set with brilliants,—120 guineas. (Attenborough.)

36. A pair of large pink pearl ear-rings in enamelled setting with brilliants,—105 guineas. (Thompson.)

37. A heart-shaped pendant, formed of a fine large turquoise surmounted by brilliants,—250 guineas. (Martin.)

38, 39. A large black pearl, with brilliant top, and a heart-shaped brilliant locket,—300 guineas. (Woodgate.)

40. A pair of shell-shaped brilliant ear-rings with pearl centres and drops,—106 guineas. (B. Benjamin.)

41. A brilliant brooch, formed as a corn-flower and group of foliage,—348 guineas. (Phillips.)

43-45. A ring with a large brilliant, a fine single stone brilliant ring, and a ring with a large brilliant and two fine emeralds,—485 guineas. (Woodgate.)

46. A ring, with a splendid ruby and two brilliants,—300 guineas. (Challens.)

47, 48. Three very fine emeralds, set as a ring, and a pair of hairpins formed as rosebuds, of pink pearls and brilliants,—275 guineas. (Gibbons.)

49. A marquise ring, with a pink diamond surrounded by brilliants, formerly the property of the Empress Josephine,—400 guineas. (Martin.)

50. A beautiful pendant, the centre a fine emerald, surrounded by bands of brilliants, with emerald and pearl drop,—605 guineas. (Brown.)

51, 52. A group of three wheat-ears tied with a ribbon formed of fine brilliants, making a brooch or head ornament, and the companion group,—975 guineas. (Lennox.)

53, 54. A group of two wheat-ears, en suite, and the companion group,—£810. (Martin.)

55. A fine pendant, with a large square emerald, surrounded by brilliants, with very large pearl drop,—620 guineas. (Ford.)

56. A scroll-pattern brilliant brooch, for a miniature, with large pearl drop,—470 guineas. (Challens.)

57. A broad chain-band bracelet, with sapphire and two large brilliants,—340 guineas. (Lomax.)

58. Two fine emeralds and three large brilliants, mounted as a bracelet,—810 guineas. (Hancock.)

59. A beautiful cross, formed of eleven large brilliants,—900 guineas. (Carter.)

60. A ribbon tie brilliant brooch,—335 guineas. (Grindley.)

61. A handsome pendant of brilliants and pearls, with a fine large black pearl centre and drop,—420 guineas. (Martin.)

62. Two fine large brilliants and an emerald mounted on a buckle set with small brilliants,—430 guineas. (Harborough.)

64. A splendid brooch, formed as a rosebud and leaves, composed entirely of brilliants,—820 guineas. (Attenborough.)

65. A magnificent bracelet, with sapphire centre, surrounded by rubies, brilliants, and emeralds,—£650. (Rothschild.)

67. A fine large pearl, mounted as a hairpin of chased gold, with chain set with small diamonds,—188 guineas. (Chapman.)

68. A splendid fly brooch, the body a very large opal, the head and wings set with rubies, brilliants, emeralds, sapphires, and opals,—£320. (Greenwood.)

69. A beautiful watch, in blue enamel setting, surrounded by eleven large brilliants, suspended from a hook, set with a cluster of brilliants,—£1,660. (James.)

70, 71. A fine polished emerald, surrounded by brilliants, and a bracelet with splendid ruby centre and large brilliants,—975 guineas. (Hancock.)

72, 73. A brooch, formed as an anchor, composed entirely of brilliants, and the companion brooch,—£2,150. (Eaton.)

74. A tiara, formed of a band of brilliants, the centre a cluster of fine brilliants and emeralds, surmounted by a large oval emerald, with brilliant sprays and pearl drop,—780 guineas. (Challens.)

75. A bracelet, the centre a very fine sapphire surrounded by large brilliants, with trellis pattern open-work bands, studded with brilliants,—£1,105. (Martin.)

76, 77. A brilliant set as a brooch, with fine pearl drop, and a brilliant brooch with colored stone centre and pearl drop,—730 guineas. (Keane.)

78. A brilliant tiara, formed as a group of leaves,—£970. (Carter.)

79. A pearl necklace, composed of forty-one large pearls of the highest quality, with cluster brilliant snap,—£2,400. (Marquis of Bristol.)

80-84. A pair of polished emerald drops, four pairs of larger ditto, and a single ditto,—750 guineas. (Masters.)

85-89. Two pairs of emerald drops, with brilliant tops, three pairs of larger ditto,—550 guineas. (Carter.)

90-92. Three pairs of very large emerald drops,—£1,275. (Garrard.)

93-103. A brooch, with a fine large emerald surrounded by brilliants, nine larger ditto, and one with a square emerald,—5,000 guineas. (Keane.)

104-106. A brooch with emerald centre, surrounded by fine brilliants, with emerald and brilliant drop, and two larger ditto,—£3,525. (Graham.)

107. A tiara, composed of ten fine large emeralds, surrounded by bands of brilliants,—£2,625. (Keane.)

108. A brilliant brooch, formed as a group of leaves, with six large brilliant drops and pendants, set with smaller brilliants,—1,050 guineas. (Keane.)

109-111. Three brilliant pendants composed of very fine large stones, with brilliant drops and pendants of false pearls,—2,600 guineas. (Keane.)

112. A bracelet, composed entirely of brilliants, the centre an oval sapphire,—£2,250. (Carter.)

113. A pair of long ear-rings composed of very large brilliants,—£3,255. (Stevens.)

114. A brilliant brooch, formed as a double pink,—£1,470. (Stevens.)

The whole realized upwards of £50,000 ($250,000) gold.

The quantity of diamonds now in circulation in fashion, and hoarded by commerce, is enormous, and may be estimated by the ton. Yet the requirements of society and the arts are so vast that the gem apparently seems to be a rare stone, while in reality it ranks low down in the scale of rarity.

Although we believe that there are immense diamond placers yet to be discovered in Africa, Asia, and America, we do not think that the gem will ever lose its high rank in the wants of fashion and ornamentation, or that its price will ever again descend to the valuation of 1848 except in transient times of far-extended commercial distress. The misfortunes of any one country will not affect the established price to any great extent, since the demand from other countries is so great as to preserve a well-marked equilibrium.

India, with its millions of people who prefer to invest their gains in a gem to all other known property, will furnish an eager market for the diamond for many ages to come. The history of the influx and absorption of silver by that country furnishes an interesting parallelism.

Most of the people of the earth entertain superstitious fancies, and especially invest the gems with spiritual powers or special attributes. Hence the innate love of ornament, combined with the desire of possessing a rare treasure, will always give to the gems a prestige and a commercial value above all other things. Puritanical morality may rail against the gems as luxuries; but the nature of man must be changed before these ideas can be universally adopted. The refinements of civilization, as well as the follies of barbaric ages, call for the ornamentation of jewels and gems. And modern economy may, with Tiberius, complain in vain of that “rage for jewels and precious stones which drains the empire of its wealth, and sends, in exchange for its baubles, the money of the commonwealth to foreign nations.”

A brilliant writer has lately stated that “Pictures, gems, china, bronzes, bric-à-brac of every sort, rare shawls, rare engravings, and even rare fruits, flowers, and dogs are steadily tending upwards in value, as if their price depended upon a want and not a caprice. It is the most curious illustration of the unchangeableness of the law which governs even caprices that we are acquainted with; and tends to indicate that the desire for the rare, which we all notice and smile at, in bibliopoles, antiquarians, entomologists, and every variety of the genus collector, is not an exceptionable eccentricity, but a permanent attribute of the human mind, though only noticed in those who have wealth to indulge in some unusual or splendid form. It is like the desire of accumulation, one of the passions, and not one of the mere tastes of men; and may be relied on in business, almost as certainly as self-interest, vanity, or ambition.”

The relative worth of the diamond has never been better described than by the following lines from the pen of an able English author:—

“It is in truth the very essence of property. It is riches condensed and wealth secured; too small to be seen by the midnight burglar; too easily hid to be seized by the tyrant; and too quickly carried away to be wrested from the patriot exile or torn from the hunted outlaw. In vain would the vanquished monarch strive to remove his bags of gold, or transport his territorial domains; but a diamond is an empire made portable, with which he might purchase a better kingdom, and mount a prouder throne. Had the treasure of Crœsus been invested in brilliants he might have founded a nobler Lydia beyond the reach of his Persian invader.”