Since ancient times, sparkling precious stones have been highly valued and were a sign of royal luxury.
Crystals shimmering in the sun's rays were used to decorate a variety of things.
They were inlaid with jewelry, clothing items, symbols of royal power, and were even used in burial rituals.
Many of the stones found in mines in the distant past have disappeared, leaving mention of themselves only in myths.
But some gems continue to amaze us with their beauty even now.
For example, the legendary Orlov diamond, which everyone can see in the Diamond Fund of the Russian Federation.
History of the Orlov diamond
In ancient times, the Orlov Diamond was in the Buddha Temple as a decoration for a statue. An English soldier noticed a large diamond, he decided to steal the gem, and began to come to the holy place as a novice.
The military man gained the trust of the clergy, and one evening during bad weather he stole a priceless stone. The soldier tried to find other precious stones in the holy place, but did not have time to do so. The thief was very afraid of exposure, so he quickly left the temple. Soon he sold the mineral for an insignificant price and forgot about the incident.
For a long time nothing was heard about the Orlov diamond, but then it passed into the Mughal dynasty. The stone weighed more than 300 carats, and it was given to a jeweler, who turned the diamond into a priceless diamond.
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During cutting and jewelry work, the diamond was reduced by half, which greatly angered the owner of the stone. He refused to pay for the work and took away all his property from the master because of the damage caused to him.
Subsequently, the owner of the crystal died, and it ended up in the hands of the rebels in an unknown way. After which a merchant bought the stone. He was shocked by the magnificence of the diamond, he paid all his money for it, and then put it in an Amsterdam bank for safekeeping. Until the owner’s death, the crystal was kept in a jar, and then the merchant’s son-in-law decided to sell the gem. Count Orlov bought it without much hesitation.
The count was for some time one of Catherine II’s chosen ones and knew very well the ruler’s passion for jewelry. He decided to present the stone as a gift to the great woman, who admired the extraordinary appearance of the diamond and gave the order to make it into a decoration for a scepter.
So the gem began to bear the same name, from now on it was called only the Orlov diamond.
Important information
The mineral was never processed again; it retained its appearance for centuries. Today it is a decoration of the Diamond Fund of Russia.
Catherine II and the diamond
There are two versions of the appearance of such a beautiful diamond in the empress’s possession. According to the most likely version, she herself wanted to buy this diamond, but could not openly waste government property.
Then she sent Orlov to buy it, who secretly bought a beautiful copy so that it would later settle on the ruler’s scepter. So the diamond still remains a symbol of power.
But according to the official, second, version, carefully disseminated by the great empress, the diamond was donated by the prince because of his great feelings for Catherine. He tried in this way to earn the queen's favor. In Europe, everyone admired such a manifestation of feelings, but it was hardly true.
This is how Orlov settled with us in Russia and in our time is one of the stones of the Diamond Fund of the Russian Federation.
Location, approximate cost
Historical information about the diamond is very confusing. Crystal managed to survive many journeys, but they are not documented. Today, collectors dream of getting a diamond for their own collections, because it has a truly exorbitant price.
It is impossible to determine the true value of the Orlov diamond, because no one can accurately determine the date of origin of the diamond. It is believed that the diamond was found in India at the end of the 17th and beginning of the 18th centuries. It is the largest and purest of all precious gems. The largest mineral weighing 400 carats turned into a magnificent rose with 180 facets. The stone lost half its weight during processing, but now weighs 194.8 carats.
This method of cutting in the form of a rose is almost never found anywhere. Orlov with such processing is the largest in the whole world. The diamond is absolutely pure, it has a barely noticeable greenish tint.
What does the Orlov diamond look like?
The diamond is a large transparent stone in pleasant bluish-green tones. With a not entirely even base, it resembles half an egg, cut in the shape of an “Indian rose.” The surface of the gem is covered with many small triangular faces, arranged in tiers and reminiscent of pink petals.
Despite its long and eventful past, the stone has been preserved in its original processing, and therefore arouses increased historical and cultural interest.
Legends about the Black Orlov diamond
There are many legends about Orlov’s black diamond, all of them preserve mysticism and mystery. This mineral has no connection with Count Orlov, but has gained negative fame and destroyed many people:
- In the Buddha Temple, a black diamond adorned the statue of the great Deity. In the hot summer heat, an unknown monk sneaked into the temple secretly, stole a stone, and then disappeared without a trace. No one can claim that the story happened in reality, but the stone disappeared without a trace.
- They tried to find the gem for a long time, but to no avail, and then it was accidentally discovered.
- History preserves the legend that Orlova’s black diamond destroyed Princess Natalya Orlova. However, historians have been unable to find evidence of the existence of the mysterious woman. The princess once received a large inheritance from her late husband, which included a mysterious diamond. The princess subsequently committed suicide.
- It also became known that two Russian princesses decided to take their own lives without any apparent problems. Relatives did not understand why this happened, because women had no reason to end their earthly existence. However, later the diaries of the princesses were discovered, in which very strange events were described. Women slowly lost their minds, could not distinguish reality from fiction, and blamed the black diamond for this.
- The black diamond attracted people and had a special effect on them. It gave its owners obsessions and strange thoughts; no one could take their eyes off the diamond. The crystal had an effect on the souls of people, they were ready to do anything just to become the owner of the jewel.
- The jeweler who processed the black crystal lost all the savings and property he had and began to work fiercely. The master stopped paying attention to everything that was happening, he was not interested in anything, and as a result, when the diamond was ready, the jeweler lost his mind.
- Esotericists are confident that all natural diamonds contain powerful energy that has a strong influence on humans. Diamonds have mystical powers, so you need to be careful when dealing with them.
Black diamonds have a special and very powerful energy. They are difficult to process.
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The Orlov Black Diamond is considered mystical because it has destroyed many lives. The reason for this lies in the fact that he needed to constantly change owners, since he took all the energy from them. No one was able to subjugate this magical object.
There are many rumors that a black diamond from Russia went to America. It constantly changed owners, so it is impossible to say who exactly it belonged to. The sellers never disclosed the reason for selling the gem; they kept it in the strictest confidence. Therefore, it is difficult to say how many people were killed by a magical object. It is known that the black diamond Orlov is now in America. The owner tried to sell it at auction, but hid the true name of the stone.
The story of the great empress's diamond carries love and unrealistic hopes. Well, the history of the black diamond is based on the mystical capabilities of the stone. Is it possible to unravel the mystery of these diamonds?
History and origin of the black diamond
The alien version of the origin of black diamonds is not without meaning. She explains that black diamond has more differences than its similarities with its ordinary counterpart. It becomes clear why it was never found in kimberlite pipes.
But an asteroid that fell on our planet more than a billion years ago could well have become the source of this unusual and atypical mineral rock for terrestrial soils. This hypothesis is actively promoted by Western gemologists. She is beautiful and is liked by fans of jewelry that is decorated with black diamonds.
But most mineralogists are inclined to the idea of volcanic origin. That is, the technology of stone formation is the same as that of a traditional diamond, it’s just that the conditions of occurrence are different, and it is they that affect the color, giving this unusual dark color. Findings of gems in volcanic rocks speak in their favor; in particular, a black diamond was discovered in the magmatic formations of the Avachinskaya Sopka in Kamchatka.
The first to discover stones in nature, which later gained popularity as jewelry and a magical reputation, were Brazilian miners. It was they who first introduced the name carbonado (from “carbo” - “coal”). This happened in 1840. The mineral found did not lie as deep as ordinary diamonds, and had a color unusual for them.
And today Brazil is the main deposit of stone. Only Central Africa can compete with it in this area. In general, in nature, black crystals can be found in volcanic pipes and alluvial (applied by flowing water) deposits.
The black diamond did not immediately become a favorite in jewelry. For a long time, these crystals were used for technical purposes. The most famous representatives of this gem are “Black Orlov” (67.5 carats) and “Amsterdam” (created in honor of the 700th anniversary of the Dutch capital).
The latter weighs 33.74 carats and is a single crystal. In the fall of 2001, this beauty was sold at Christie's auction in Geneva for $352,000. But the legendary “Black Prince” is neither a diamond nor a black stone at all - it is one of the largest and most expensive rubies in the world.
Origin of the stone
At the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries, a 400-carat diamond was discovered in India. Historians believe that the diamond under the name of Count Orlov originally belonged to Shah Jehan.
Researchers draw parallels with the historical Great Mogul gemstone, suggesting that they are the same crystal. Another name for diamond is known, which has come down to us from ancient times: “Derianur”, which means “Sea of Light”.
After the death of Jehan, “Orlov” probably remained for a long time on the island of Srirangapatnam, decorating a statue near a Hindu temple. But he was not destined to remain in this form until the end of centuries.
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Diamond “Shah” – “brother” of “Orlov”
Unlike the Orlov, the Shah was not cut and therefore is not considered a diamond. The stone has the shape of an irregular octahedron, with dimensions of 3 cm and 88 grams. The crystal has unique characteristics; on the edges there are three inscriptions with the names of previous owners.
Almaz, like “Orlov,” came to us from India, where he remained for a long time, only changing owners. It belongs to precious stones that, in addition to their physical properties, have a long and fascinating history.
The Orlov diamond is a unique diamond. Its edges are literally overgrown with history and, thanks to this cutting, it has become a more valuable and interesting specimen.
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Myths and reality
Another precious stone is known under the name “Orlov diamond”. It is distinguished by its black color and a more mysterious origin story. Even the name of the true owner of the gem is not known to this day.
There is a legend that the stone was kept in the eye socket of one of the idols at an Indian temple. And having once been kidnapped, he began to “take revenge” on all subsequent owners, bringing them only grief and misfortune.
It is possible that the first owner of the dark diamond was Nadezhda Orlova, from whom it got its name. But the story of her life is no less mysterious and has not been reliably established.
There were rumors that girls committed suicide because of the diamond. After the death of the two owners of the black diamond, Princess Golitsyna-Baratynskaya and Maria Leshchinskaya, it was decided to split Orlov. Only the largest rectangular fragment has survived to this day.
Precious gift to the Empress
The diamond came to Catherine II as a gift from the count on her name day.
Orlov knew about Catherine's passion for precious stones, he knew that his position at court was becoming less and less significant. It was increasingly difficult for him to compete with other favorites of the Empress, especially Count Potemkin. In order to regain Catherine’s favor, he did not skimp and presented her with such a surprise.
The notes of the Prussian Count Solms, who was present that evening, mentioned the events that took place at dinner. The Empress was surrounded by attention and respect, a festive atmosphere reigned everywhere, and guests greeted the hostess with gifts and flowers.
The Count also did not arrive empty-handed. Joyfully anticipating Catherine's smile and delight, Gregory made a gift. He turned out to be right, the empress liked the diamond.
The Empress liked the diamond so much that she ordered it to be enclosed in two rims of her scepter. But Catherine rejected the count himself, maintaining her former coldness towards him.
