Mystery of the month: The Hope Diamond
Does possession of the Hope Diamond really spell certain death for its owners?
It was stolen from a Hindu god
As 4ueen Marie Antoinette walked to the throne on the arm of her husband, .ing Louis ;9I of France, the courtiers surrounding them murmured in awe at the radiance of their attire.
Their clothes were made of the finest silks, they were dripping in the most da]]ling jewels – and round her neck, the 4ueen wore a huge, stunning blue diamond. All the eyes in the room were drawn to it...
But a few years later, in 1792, the French monarchy was in tatters. The French 5evolution had resulted in the overthrow of the aristocracy, and the lives of extreme privilege that Marie Antoinette and Louis had lived were over. They were condemned to death for treason and executed by guillotine.
Looking back, some felt that Marie Antoinette’s diamond – the French Blue, as it was known – was to blame. But how could a jewel – especially one as beautiful as this – result in its owner’s death?
Now known as the Hope Diamond, after one of its many former owners, this huge, sparkling 45.52 carat gem is said to carry a deadly curse.
The legend goes that it was stolen in the early 17th century from a temple in India, where it was one of the eyes in the statue of a Hindu god.
Fatal curse
Plucked out by an impious priest, it was sold to French explorer and merchant Jean-baptiste Tavernier.
However, the temple’s mystics placed a curse on anyone who came into possession of this stone, dooming them to an agonising death.
It’s said that the priest who stole the stone was the first victim of the curse – although exact details of his death are lost to the mists of time – and the second was Jean-baptiste Tavernier. He sold the stone to .ing Louis ;I9 of France for a handsome profit – but was mauled to death by wild dogs.
The diamond went missing during the French 5evolution, and when it resurfaced, it had been cut into a smaller gem.
Over the centuries, it passed through some illustrious, wellmanicured and of course extremely rich hands – and its deadly curse claimed several lives along the way.
The Dutch jeweller who recut the gem, William Fals, was murdered by his son, who then committed suicide.
Another owner, *reek merchant Simon Maoncharides, drove his car over a cliff, killing himself, his wife and his child.
Dog’s delight
American heiress Evelyn Walsh Mclean – who famously attached the diamond to her beloved dog’s collar – lost her mother, son and daughter in Tuick succession, then died herself owing huge debts.
Her surviving children sold the diamond to Washington museum The Smithsonian to pay for her debts – only for the unlucky man tasked with delivering the diamond to have his leg crushed in an accident, suffer a severe head injury, and have his house burn down!
But is the ‘curse’ really to blame for any of this? As with other famous curses, such as ‘.ing Tut’s &urse’ which we looked at in last month’s Chat it’s
fate, it’s easy to find examples of disasters connected to historic artefacts that have touched the lives of hundreds of people over the centuries!
Take 4ueen Marie Antoinette, for example. Although she may have worn the Hope Diamond, it’s a stretch to blame it for the French 5evolution!
And let’s face it, drama is never far away from the lives of the super-rich. Which makes it even odder that the poor old delivery man, who didn’t even own the diamond, would end up being cursed by it!
In any case, the curse seems to have ended since the diamond found a permanent home at The Smithsonian Museum.
Long may it remain that way...