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Precious gems have been around for centuries, and since the beginning they've been admired and worn by the elite of the world. Hoarded by rulers and looted by opportunists, they signify great wealth and status. Individual gems, inherited throughout generations, have histories of passing between allies and foes, which add to their value and allure. However, many of the world's most notorious stones carry a controversial or mysterious past.
Intrigued? Click on to discover the world’s most controversial gemstones.
The Cullinan was originally a 3,106-carat gem discovered in 1905 in Pretoria, Transvaal (present-day South Africa). The largest diamond ever found, it was named after Thomas Cullinan, who owned the mine.
In 1907, the local Transvaal government bought the stone and gifted it to their imperial ruler, King Edward VII, for his 66th birthday the following year. It has since been part of the British Crown Jewels. Later cut into more than 100 pieces, the nine main stones were named the Cullinan I–IX.
Representing one of the world's biggest empires, Cullinan I and II were featured in the funeral procession of Queen Elizabeth II. This caused controversy, as it was remarked that at no time during her long reign had the Queen apologized for the atrocities carried out during Britain’s colonial rule.
Another gem discovered during colonial plunder, La Peregrina is believed to have been found by an enslaved person in 1513 around the Golf of Panama.
The pearl was quickly taken into the coffers of the Imperial Spain. However, in 1813, it came into the possession of the Bonaparte family. Napoleon III eventually inherited it, but sold it to the English Duke of Abercorn after being exiled.
The duke’s descendants auctioned it at Sotheby’s in 1969, where it was bought by Richard Burton as a Valentine’s Day gift for his wife, Elizabeth Taylor. After Taylor’s death in 2011, the pearl was auctioned and sold to an anonymous buyer.
At 45.5 carats, the Hope Diamond is the biggest known dark blue diamond in the world. Unclear if it was bought or stolen, it’s believed that a French merchant named Jean-Baptiste Tavernier obtained it from the Kollur mine in India around the mid-17th century. After being cut, it was sold to the king of France, Louis XIV, in 1668.
In 1792, while Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were imprisoned, thieves stole the French Crown Jewels, including the Hope Diamond. It only reappeared in 1812 under the ownership of London diamond dealer Daniel Eliason.
It was later bought by banker and gem collector Henry Philip Hope in the 1830s. It now resides at the National Museum of Natural History in New York City.
A controversial member of the British Crown Jewels, the sighting of the Koh-i-Noor dates back to 1628, in the royal courts of Indian ruler Shah Jahan.
Passed and plundered from one ruler to another, the British had their eyes on the diamond. In 1849, after two Anglo-Sikh wars, the Sikh Empire fell to the quasi-governmental British East India Company, who annexed Punjab and claimed the Koh-i-Noor. The diamond was later presented to Queen Victoria, who is seen here with the diamond used as a brooch.
India has repeatedly demanded the return of the diamond, claiming that it was stolen. The British monarchy has attempted to quell the scandal by limiting the diamond's usage.
The 287.4-carat Tiffany Diamond is one of the largest yellow diamonds in the world. Discovered in the Kimberley mine in present-day South Africa in 1877, it was acquired by Tiffany & Co. founder Charles Lewis Tiffany in 1878.
At the time of Tiffany’s discovery, South Africa was a British colony, which employed black laborers at the mine. Racist laws were put in place to ensure the workers’ wages were low, while they worked in dangerous conditions.
A blood diamond, it caused controversy in 2021 when Tiffany & Co. debuted its advertising campaign with Beyoncé, the first black woman to wear it. It had previously been worn by Audrey Hepburn and Lady Gaga, the latter who experienced minimal backlash in 2019.
Also known as the Eye of Brahma, this 195-carat diamond is said to have been stolen in the early 19th century in India. Legends say that a monk stole it from the statue of the Hindu god Brahma, which caused the diamond to be cursed.
In 1932, diamond dealer J. W. Paris reportedly took the diamond to the US, and soon after committed suicide by jumping from a skyscraper in New York City.
Later owners of the diamond included two Russian princesses, Leonila Galitsine-Bariatinsky and Nadia Vygin-Orlov, the latter after whom the diamond is named. Both women allegedly jumped to their deaths in the 1940s. Pictured: actress Nicollette Sheridan wearing the Black Orlov.
Located above the Cullinan II diamond at the front of the Imperial State Crown, Black Prince’s Ruby isn’t a ruby at all! The gemstone is actually a spinel.
Believed to have originated in a mine in present-day Tajikistan, it first appears in written records in 1366, when it was owned by Abu Sa’id, the Moorish Prince of Granada (in present-day Andalusia, Spain). After the Christian retaking of Iberian territories, Sa’id was murdered and the jewels confiscated.
The gemstone has been in the possession of English rulers since it was given in 1367 to Edward of Woodstock, the "Black Prince." He received the precious stone after forging an alliance with the Iberian rulers.
The 34.98-carat Beau Sancy diamond was famously found in the mines of Golconda, India. The gem came into the possession of Nicolas de Harlay, Lord of Sancy, from whom it got its name. It was later bought by French king Henri IV, who presented it to his wife, Marie de' Medici. When the king was murdered, his wife fell into hard times and eventually had to sell the diamond.
It was owned by four different royal families in France, England, the Dutch Republic, and Prussia.
After more than 300 years in the possession of the House of Hohenzollern, the diamond was sold in 2012 at Sotheby's auction in Geneva for US$9.57 million to an anonymous buyer. It became the oldest diamond to ever be sold in an auction.
While its origins are unclear, the Lahore Diamond likely came from the Golconda region in southern India in the early 18th century.
Presented to Queen Victoria in 1851, the 22.5-carat diamond is another component of the British Crown Jewels. In 1853, the Lahore Diamond was incorporated into the Timur Ruby necklace, now known as the Coronation necklace.
So, how did it end up with the Brits? Well, when the East India Company forced the young Maharajah Duleep Singh to resign from power, he was also obliged to hand over the Lahore Diamond.
Discovered in Queensland, Australia, the gemstone served as a doorstop for about a decade before being discovered by jeweler Harry Kazanjian. Yes, truly!
In 1947, Kazanjian bought the stone, and spent two months studying it before making the decision to cut it, revealing the six-pointed star. In 2002, the 733-carat diamond was in the spotlight again when jeweler and artist Jack Armstrong, along with his wealthy girlfriend Gabrielle Grohe, convinced the Kazanjian family to sell the stone.
However, a lengthy legal battle between the couple followed, when Armstrong failed to pay the agreed-upon amount of US$500,000 in three months to buy out Grohe. The dispute ended quietly outside of court.
Sources: (Esquire) (Mental Floss)
The world’s most controversial gemstones
These precious stones have had a far-from-sparkly past
LIFESTYLE Controversy
Precious gems have been around for centuries, and since the beginning they've been admired and worn by the elite of the world. Hoarded by rulers and looted by opportunists, they signify great wealth and status. Individual gems, inherited throughout generations, have histories of passing between allies and foes, which add to their value and allure. However, many of the world's most notorious stones carry a controversial or mysterious past.
Intrigued? Click on to discover the world’s most controversial gemstones.