Royal relative hunts for Myanmar’s ‘stolen’ ruby
• To generations of Burmese, the giant ruby known as the Nga Mauk symbolizes the colonial exploitation of their country.
Legend has it that the ruby was stolen from the Burmese royal family by a British officer and found its way into the Crown Jewels. Others believe it may have been given as a gift to Queen Victoria, only to disappear.
For Soe Win, the 70- yearold great- grandson of King Thibaw, the l ast king of Burma — who was sent into exile in India by the British in 1885 — recovering the gem would be a way of restoring pride to his nation.
Blame for the ruby’s dis- appearance has fallen on Col. Edward Sladen, who oversaw the king’s exile. The king said he gave Sladen the ruby for safekeeping and in June, 1886, wrote to the British viceroy asking for its return. In late 1911, he wrote directly to King George V, again naming Sladen as the culprit. His plea fell on deaf ears.
The refusal l ed Win’s uncle, Taw Phaya Galae, to speculate it had been used in the Imperial Crown of India, made in 1911 for George V. It was this trail Win followed to London. But the Royal Collection Trust told him: “There is no archival documentation to indicate the origin of the rubies in the Imperial Crown of India.”
Win suspects it is still in the Tower of London. But there is another theory. Records held by the collection state a large ruby was presented to Queen Victoria “by the Burmese ambassadors” and was later bequeathed to Princess Louise, the Queen’s fourth daughter, who may have passed it on in her will. However, her will remains sealed.