History of the Owners and Circumstances of the Koh-i-Nur Diamond

THE KOH-I-NUR.

The Great Diamond of History and Romance"--Strange but True--Fact and Fable--An Extravagant Tradition--"One Long Romance of Five Centuries"--Tricks of Eastern Friendship--Exchanging Turbans--The Pitiful Story of Shah Rokh--A Factor of War and Murder, the Stone Carries a Curse--Built up in a Prison Wall--A Pathetic Incident--Eastern Reverence for Gems--The Supposed Talisman of Victory brings Defeat--Annexation of the Punjaub to the British Empire--Confiscation of the Crown Jewels of Lahore to the East India Company--The Greatest Gem of all Presented to the Queen--Its Character and Appearance--It is Re-cut on the Advice of the Prince Consort--The Koh-i-Nur at last a Token of Liberty and Peace.

This is pre-eminently the "Great Diamond of history and romance." Its stirring adventures, when divorced from all connection with Tavernier's "Great Mogul," become intelligible enough. The first distinct and authentic reference to the "Koh-i-Nur" occurs in the subjoined passage from the Memoirs of Sultan Baber, the author of which was a direct descendant of Tamerlane, and founder of the so-called Mogul Empire in Hindostan. Under the date of May 4, 1526, the Sultan writes:--

"Bikermajit, a Hindoo, who was Rajah of Gwalior, had governed that country for upwards of a hundred years. In the battle in which Ibrahim was defeated, Bikermajit was sent to hell. Bikermajit's family, and the heads of his clan were at this moment in Agra. When Humaiun arrived, Bikermajit's people attempted to escape, but were taken by the parties which Humaiun had placed upon the watch, and put in custody. Humaiun did not permit them to be plundered. Of their own free will they presented to Humaiun a 'peshkesh' (tribute or present), consisting of a quantity of jewels and precious stones. Among these was one famous diamond, which had been acquired by Sultan Ala-ed-din. It is so valuable that a judge of diamonds valued it at half of the daily expense of the whole world. It is about eight mishkels. On my arrival, Humaiun presented it to me as a peshkesh, and I gave it back to him as a present."

That the diamond here referred to is the "Koh-i-Nur," there can be no reasonable doubt; nor indeed has the fact ever been seriously called into question. It will be noticed that, although he speaks of it as already "famous," Baber gives it no particular name, and it did not take its present designation till it passed into the hands of Nadir Shah. The illustrious historian mentions, however, that it "had been acquired by Sultan Ala-ed-din," which enables us to trace its existence some two hundred years further back. The Ala-ed-din here spoken of belonged to the Khilji dynasty, which succeeded that of the Ghuri, and which ruled over a large portion of Hindostan for 33 years, from A.D. 1288 to 1321, when they were replaced by the Toghlaks. Ala-ed-din Khilji had obtained possession of the "famous diamond" in the year 1304, when he defeated the Rajah of Malwa, in whose family it had been as an heirloom from time out of mind. One tradition carries it back to the somewhat legendary Vikramaditya, an ancestor of the Rajah of Malwa here spoken of, and of Baber's Bikermajit, Rajah of Gwaloir. This Vikramaditya flourished in 57 B.C., and is said to have driven the Saca (by which are no doubt meant the Scythians) out of India. But no value can attach to the tradition, which is evidently a sort of afterthought, suggested by the similarity, or rather identity, of the two names Bikermajit and Vikramaditya. At the same time the association is significant, as it serves to show that the gem was at all times regarded as the property of the Rajahs of Malwa, who are sometimes spoken of as Rajahs of Ujein and Gwalior; for all these places were formerly included in the territory of Malwa, which has since been subdivided among the States of Bhopal, Indore, and Gwalior--the dominions of Scindia. We now understand how it happened that the diamond, after being acquired by the Sultan Ala-ed-din in 1304, is found in the possession of Bikermajit, Rajah of Gwalior in 1526. It had evidently been restored to Bikermajit's family by the Khilji ruler after peace had been established between the two states.

A still more obscure and extravagant tradition identifies this stone with one discovered first some 5,000 years ago, in the bed of the Lower Godavery River, near Masulipatam, and afterwards worn as a sacred talisman by Carna, Rajah of Anga, who figures in the legendary wars of the Mahabharata. That such a stone should have been found in such a place is likely enough, as it may well have been washed down to the delta of the Godavery, which flows through one of the oldest and richest diamantiferous regions in the world. But its identification with the stone under consideration rests on no solid foundation, nor will it readily be believed that a gem, which remained unnamed till the eighteenth century, could be unerringly traced back to pre-historic times.

Its subsequent history from the time when it fell into the hands of Baber to the present day is inseparably associated with many of the most stirring and romantic events of modern days. But, to quote Maskelyne, though "one long romance from then till now, it is well authenticated at every step, as history seems never to have lost sight of this stone of fate from the days when Ala-ed-din took it from the Rajah of Malwa, five centuries and a half ago, to the day when it became a crown jewel of England."

Bernier tells us that on the death of Shah Jehan, Aurung-zeb "set out immediately for Agra, where Begum Sahel received him with distinguished honour. On arriving at the women's apartments the princess presented him with a large golden basin full of precious stones, her own jewels and those which belonged to Shah Jehan." The princess here referred to was Jihanira, the too well-beloved daughter of Shah Jehan, who remained with him to the last, and who had used her influence to prevent him from destroying his jewels rather than surrender them to Aurungzeb, as mentioned in our account of the "Great Mogul." It is uncertain whether Baber's diamond was one of those contained in the golden basin, or whether it had already been given to Aurung-zeb during his father's lifetime. The former supposition seems to be the most probable; for amongst Aurung-zeb's treasures exhibited to Tavernier, November 3, 1665, there was only one diamond of great size--the "Mogul"--and Shah Jehan, already afflicted by a fatal disease, died in the following February. But the point is of little consequence, as in any case the stone remained in the possession of the Mogul dynasty until Nadir Shah's invasion of India, during the reign of Mohammed Shah, in 1739.

In our account of the "Orloff," reference has already been made to Whittaker's statement that Aurung-zeb made use of the "Koh-i-Nur" as one of the eyes of the peacock, adorning his "Peacock Throne," and that Nadir carried off and broke up this throne, thus gaining possession of the famous gem. But according to another and apparently a more trustworthy account, when he seized on the Delhi treasury this stone, which he was bent on securing, was found to be missing, and for a long time all his efforts to obtain it were baffled. At last a woman from Mohammed's harem betrayed the secret, informing Nadir that the emperor wore it concealed in his turban, which he never on any occasion laid aside.

Nadir had now recourse to a very clever trick, in order to secure the coveted prize. Having already seized on the bulk of the Delhi treasures, and concluded a treaty with the ill-fated Mogul emperor, he had no further pretext for quarrelling, and could not therefore resort to violence in order to effect his purpose. But he skilfully availed himself of a time-honoured Oriental custom, seldom omitted by princes of equal rank, on State occasions. At the grand ceremony a few days afterwards held in Delhi, for the purpose of re-instating Mohammed on the throne of his Tartar ancestors, Nadir suddenly took the opportunity of asking him to exchange turbans, in token of reconciliation, and in order to cement the eternal friendship that they had just sworn for each other. Taken completely aback by this sudden move, and lacking the leisure even for reflection, Mohammed found himself checkmated by his wily rival, and was fain, with as much grace as possible, to accept the insidious request. Indeed the Persian conqueror left him no option, for he quickly removed his own national sheepskin head-dress, glittering with costly gems, and replaced it with the emperor's turban. Maintaining the proverbial self-command of Oriental potentates Mohammed betrayed his surprise and chagrin by no outward sign, and so indifferent did he seem to the exchange, that for a moment Nadir began to fear he had been misled. Anxious to be relieved of his doubts, he hastily dismissed the durbar with renewed assurances of friendship and devotion. Withdrawing to his tent he unfolded the turban, to discover, with selfish rapture, the long coveted stone. He hailed the sparkling gem with the exclamation, "Koh-i-Nur !" signifying in English, "Mountain of Light."

At Nadir's death most of his treasures were dispersed, but the "Koh-i-Nur," henceforth known by this title, passed together with many other jewels into the hands of his feeble son, and temporary successor, Shah Rokh. On him it brought nothing but misfortune; yet he clung to it with amazing tenacity, refusing to part with it under pressure of the most atrocious tortures, including even loss of sight. After his overthrow, he had been permitted to reside at Meshd, as governor of that city and district. Hither he brought the "Koh-i-Nur," together with many other gems of great value, which formed part of the plunder carried off by his father from India. Aga Mohammed, who had an insatiable appetite for such things, determined to get possession of them; and in order the more easily to effect his purpose, he advanced with a large force towards Meshd, under the pretext of visiting the sacred shrine of the Imam Riza, which is annually resorted to by many thousands of Shiah pilgrims. He thus succeeded in quietly occupying the city. After performing his devotions at the tomb of the saint, suddenly throwing off all disguise, he ordered the blind prince to deliver up his concealed treasures. As the infatuated Shah Rokh still protested that he had already parted with them, he was ordered to be put to fresh torture, which had the effect of bringing to light several costly gems. But as neither the "Koh-i-Nur" nor the immense ruby known to have been in the crown of Aurung-zeb were amongst them, Aga Mohammed devised a truly diabolical expedient to get hold of them. He ordered his victim's head to be closely shaved and encircled with a diadem of paste, and boiling oil to be poured into the receptacle thus formed. But even the frightful agony of this torture could only induce the victim to surrender the ruby. He still retained his hold of the great diamond. The miserable monarch never recovered from these injuries. Before his death, Ahmed Shah, founder of the Durani Afghan Empire, came to his assistance in 1751, concluded an alliance with him, and received in return the fatal gem, whose brilliancy could no longer rejoice the lack-lustre eyes of Shah Rokh.

Possession of the unlucky gem proved no less disastrous to the Durani dynasty than it had to the Mogul emperors, and to Nadir's family. At his death Ahmed Shah bequeathed it to his son and heir Taimur Shah, who removed the seat of government from Kandahar to Kabul, and who died in 1793. From Taimur it descended, with the crown, to his eldest son, Shah Zaman, who was deposed and deprived of his sight by his next brother, Shah Shuja ul-Mulk. The usurper thus became possessed of the "Koh-i-Nur," which he retained almost to his death; but which, nevertheless, involved him in an uninterrupted series of calamities and sufferings. After having remained for many years concealed in the wall of a stronghold, where Shah Zaman had been confined, the diamond was brought to light by the merest accident. Shah Zaman had, as he supposed, securely embedded it in the plaster of his prison wall. But in course of time a portion of the plaster crumbled away, leaving one of the sharp angles of the crystal exposed, or slightly protruding on the surface, Against this one of the officials happening to scratch his hand, his attention was attracted to the spot, his eye fell on the sparkling facet, and the "Koh-i-Nur" was once more rescued from its hiding place. At all State ceremonials Shah Shuja now wore it on his breast, where it glittered when Elphinstone was sent by the Indian Government as Envoy to Peshawur during that Prince's troubled reign.

In his turn dethroned, deprived of his sight, and driven into exile by Shah Mahmud, third son of Taimur, Shah Shuja had contrived, amidst all his disasters, to retain possession of the great diamond, with which he now withdrew to the court of the famous Runjit-Singh, the "Lion of the Punjaub," accompanied by his brother, Shah Zaman, whom, as stated, he had himself already rendered sightless, according to the brutal fashion of the Durani court.

Runjit at first received the two ill-starred brothers with open arms, and even declared war on their behalf against Shah Mahmud, from whom he took the territory of Kashmir, which at that time formed part of the Afghan dominions. He, however, not only forgot to restore their possessions to the unfortunate brothers, but began to oppress them in every way, and to extort from them all the treasures they had brought away from Kabul. Amongst these the "Koh-i-Nur" was coveted more than all the rest, and Runjit spared no efforts to get hold of it. How he at last effected his purpose is thus related by Kluge:--

"Driven from Peshawur to Kashmir, and hence to Lahore, Shah Shuja became apparently the guest, but in reality the prisoner of Runjit Singh, who, though no connoisseur of precious stones, none the less attached great importance to their possession. Of the 'Koh-i-Nur' he had heard only by report, and employed every means to secure it. Wuffo-Begum, consort of the unhappy king, had also sought and obtained protection from Runjit, and was consequently now residing in Shadera. Runjit ordered her to deliver up the stone, which, however, she protested was not in her possession. Thereupon he caused all her effects to be seized and brought to Lahore, thus acquiring jewels of greater value than any he had ever possessed before. Supposing that the 'Koh-i-Nur' was amongst them, the bulk of the property, including shawls, carpets, and gems, was retained, and a few trifles returned to the Begum. But soon ascertaining that the 'Koh-i-Nur' was not to be found amongst the jewels, he had the Begum closely watched; two of her most intimate attendants were thrown into prison, and the other members of the Zenana deprived even of bread and water. No one, without being first searched, was allowed to approach or leave the princess, and it was at the same time intimated, that nothing but the surrender of the diamond would satisfy Runjit. Thereupon the Begum sent him some very costly stones, and amongst them a ruby of considerable value. Having, as stated, no personal knowledge of gems, the tyrant of the Punjaub now fancied that this ruby, which surpassed everything he had yet seen, must be the real stone. But in order to make assurance doubly sure, he sent for a person acquainted with the 'Koh-i-Nur,' placed all the stones before him, and asked, which is the 'Koh-i-Nur?' He received answer that it was not amongst those gems, which compared to it, were of little value. This made him all the more eager to procure it, and he again began to treat the Begum and her family with great harshness. After keeping them without food for two days, finding that she still held out, he gave up the hope of bringing her to terms by such means, and had recourse to more insinuating ways. She now promised to give up the stone, provided Runjit released Shah Shuja from captivity in Kashmir, and conferred a life pension on him, besides sundry favours on herself and friends. Shah Shuja was liberated at once, but some of the conditions not having been fulfilled, the Begum declared that the stone was not in her keeping, but that it had been pledged to a merchant in Kandahar. Runjit thereupon returned to the former coercive measures, and the princess was once more deprived of food, but all to no purpose. At last Shah Shuja himself volunteered to surrender the stone, and a time was fixed, on which he promised to produce it.

"On June 1, 1813, the appointed day, Runjit, accompanied by several confidential friends, and some experts acquainted with the stone, proceeded to Shadera, where Shah Shuja was then residing. At the ensuing interview, after both were seated, a profound silence prevailed which neither side seemed disposed to break. An hour was thus spent, and Runjit, notwithstanding his impatience, still abstained from interrupting the solemn stillness. He, however, hinted to a confidant that he might quietly remind Shah Shuja of the object of their interview. Thereupon the latter nodded to a slave, who withdrew, and presently returning with a packet, which he placed on the carpet, at an equal distance from the two princes. Deep silence again ensues; Runjit's impatience grows to a fever heat; no longer able to control his feelings, he directs one of the attendants to take up the packet; it is opened, and a glittering gem of unusual size is revealed, and recognised by the experts as the true 'Koh-i-Nur.' At sight of the long-coveted prize, Runjit forgets the past, and breaks the silence with the question 'At what price do you value it?' To which Shah Shuja replies 'At good luck, for it has ever been the associate of him who has vanquished his foes.' And he might have added with equal truth, 'At bad luck, for sorrow and sufferings have ever followed in its wake!' But by his answer he betrayed the true secret of the mysterious reverence akin to worship, with which choice gems of this sort have ever been regarded in the East, and till recently in the West." Much in the same way Marboeuf, bishop of Rennes, in the 11th century, described in barbarous Latin verse, the virtues of the Agate, thus translated by King:--

"The Agate on the wearer strength bestows.

With ruddy health his fresh complexion glows;

Both eloquence and grace by it are given,

He gains the favour both of earth and heaven."

According to the account of a trustworthy eyewitness, Shah Shuja's bearing throughout this interview was such as to command the deepest respect, and produced a marked effect on the audience. He received from Runjit a sum of 125,000 rupees, and soon after this occurrence he withdrew with his brother, Shah Zaman, to Ludianah, in British territory, where they resided for some time on an annual pension of 60,000 rupees each, and 6,000 to each of their eldest sons. Here Whittaker tells us that he saw them in 1821, and he adds that Runjit at that time had the diamond at Lahore, capital of the Sikh States. "A Bengali shroff, or banker, named Silchurd, resident at Ludianah, having occasion to visit Lahore on the Rajah's business, asked his highness for permission to see the jewel, which being granted, Silchurd fell on his face and worshipped the stone."

The further adventures of this splendid gem are soon told. Runjit caused it to be set in a bracelet which he wore on all public occasions. On his death bed in 1839, an attempt was made to induce him to conciliate the favour of the gods by presenting the stone to the famous shrine of Jaganath (Juggernaut). He is even said to have given his consent by an inclination of the head; but the crown jeweller refused to surrender the treasure without a duly signed written warrant, which was being prepared when Runjit breathed his last. It thus remained in the Lahore jewel--chamber till the young Rajah Dhulip-Singh was recognised by the British Government (after the murder of Shu-Singh), when an English Agent was stationed with a strong body-guard in Lahore. Then followed the mutiny of the two Sikh Regiments, which brought about the final annexation of the Punjaub in 1840, when, as related by Hunt, "the civil authorities took possession of the Lahore Treasury. under the stipulations 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-Nur' should be presented to the Queen of England. After the Company became possessed of the gem, it was taken in charge by Lord Dalhousie, and sent by him to England in custody of two officers." Thus this great historical diamond passed with victory from East to West, and was presented to the future Kaiser-i-Hind on June 3, 1850. It was shown at the first great Exhibition held the following year in Hyde Park, on which occasion it attracted a great deal of attention, although it had been so unskilfully treated by the Indian cutter that it looked little better than an ordinary crystal.

When brought to Europe it was found to weigh exactly 186 1/16 carats. We have seen that Baber gives the weight of Bikermajit's diamond at "about eight mishkels," or somewhat over 187 carats, while Tavernier repeatedly declares that the "Great Mogul" was reduced by Borgio to 279 carats. Again the two stones were of totally different form, and the Mogul was without a history, having been quite recently discovered in the Kollur mine, whereas authentic records carried the "Koh-i-Nur" back to the year 1304, beyond which date it had a tradition giving it an antiquity of some fifty centuries. Several recent writers still, however, persist in regarding these two distinct stones as one and the same gem. Even Professor Nicol, in the last edition of the Encyclopadia Britannica, revives this theory, and goes the length of suggesting that the "Great Mogul," the "Koh-i-Nur" and the stone found in Cucha in 1832, were all pieces of one original crystal. Speaking of the "Koh-i-Nur," he remarks that "its lower side is flat and undoubtedly corresponds to a cleavage plane. Hence it has been conjectured that it and the Russian 'Orloff' diamond are portions of the original stone belonging to the 'Great Mogul,' whilst a stone of 132 carats obtained by Abbas Mirza at the storming of Cucha in Khorassan in 1832, may be a third fragment. This portion was long used by a peasant as a flint for striking fire. The three united would have nearly the form and size given by Tavernier, and the 'Koh-i-Nur' would then surpass all known diamonds in its magnitude, as in its eventful history." For a refutation of this theory, the reader is referred to our account of the Abbas Mirza Diamond.

In consequence of the clumsy way in which the Hindoo cutter had handled the "Koh-i-Nur," at a time when the art was still, doubtless, in its infancy, Prince Albert consulted Sir David Brewster, as to how it might be re-cut to the best possible advantage. He found in it, as is the case with many other large diamonds, several little caves, which he declared (according to his theory), to be the result of the expansive force of condensed gases. This, together with the flaws already noticed, he considered would make the cutting of it, without serious diminution, a very difficult thing. Messrs. Coster, however, of Amsterdam, thought that in the hands of skilful workmen, the difficulties might be overcome. Several patterns of cuts were laid before Her Majesty and the Prince Consort, and after due consultation, selection was made of the form which it now has, and which may be described as that of a regularly-cut brilliant.

Mr. Voorsanger, of Mr. Coster's establishment, was the workman entrusted with the responsible task of re-cutting the famous gem, and his labours were conducted in the atelier of the Crown Jewels, in London. To assist his object a small four-horse machine was erected, and the cutting commenced by the Prince Consort placing the diamond on the mill on the 6th of July, 1852. The operation was completed at the end of thirty-eight days of twelve hours each. The "Star of the South," a much larger stone, was afterwards cut by the same hand in three months. But the "Pitt," or "Regent," treated by the slower hand-process of the eighteenth century, had occupied no less than two years.

One of the flaws in the "Koh-i-Nur" gave great trouble. In order to remove it the number of revolutions of the cutting-wheel had to be increased to 3,000 per minute, and even then the object was only attained very slowly. During the process of reduction, the diamond lost exactly eighty carats in weight, having been reduced from 186 1/16 to its present weight of 106 1/16 carats.

After all, the result was far from giving universal satisfaction, although obtained at a cost of no less than pound 8,000. The Prince Consort, who took the greatest interest in the operation, and whose sound advice had probably prevented a total failure, openly expressed his dissatisfaction with the work.

On the treatment which the "Koh-i-Nur" received in the cutter's hands, King is very severe, remarking that owing to the flattened and oval figure of the stone, the brilliant pattern selected by the Queen's advisers "entailed the greatest possible amount of waste." He adds that Mr. Coster would have preferred the drop form, but that "in a historical relic like this, the sole course that would have recommended itself to a person of taste, was the judicious one pursued some years before by Messrs. Rundell and Bridge, in their re-cutting of the 'Nassak,' both in its native and artificial figure. In this, by following the trails of the Hindoo cutter, amending his defects, and accommodating the pattern to the exigencies of the subject matter, they transformed the rudely-facetted, lustreless mass, into a diamond of perfect brilliancy, at the sacrifice of no more than ten per cent. of its original weight."

It may also be remarked that, although said to be cut as a brilliant, this great Oriental talisman is really only such in name, being much too thin to have satisfied the Jeffries, Ralph Potters, and the other great dealers of the last and beginning of the present century. In fact the cutting of the "Koh-i-Nur" on this occasion, revealed the painful fact that the art was then extinct in England, while even the Amsterdam and Paris operators had lost much of their former cunning. They followed a system of mere routine, betraying little inventive power, and showing themselves incapable of grappling with the problem of how best to reduce a stone, with the least sacrifice of its weight, and the greatest display of its natural lustre.

The "Koh-i-Nur" is preserved in Windsor Castle. A model of the gem is kept in the jewel room of the Tower of London, to satisfy the laudable curiosity of Her Majesty's faithful lieges. Although not of the very finest water, and of a greyish tinge, the stone was valued before being re-cut at about pound 140,000. But Barbot considers it far from being worth such a sum. He allows, however, that it is still an extraordinary stone, "but more on account of its great surface than for its play, which is almost neutralised by its great spread." It must, however, be remembered that this is the criticism of a Frenchman naturally alarmed for the hitherto unrivalled reputation of the "Regent." Since Barbot's time it will be seen in our account of the "English Dresden," that the lustre even of the "Regent," has been somewhat dimmed by the absolutely faultless character of the Bagagem crystal.