Leisure hours among the gems

by Augustus C. Hamlin

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.