The Great Chrysanthemum - Famous Diamond

In the summer of 1963, a 198.28-carat fancy brown diamond was found in the South African diamond fields. This unusual stone was purchased by Julius Cohen, New York City manufacturing jeweler, under whose direction it was fashioned by the firm of S & M Kaufman into a 104.15-carat pear shape. The stone has a total of 189 facets (67 on the crown, 65 on the girdle, and 57 on the pavilion) and measures 25mm wide, 39mm long, and 16.2mm deep. It is mounted as the central stone in a yellow gold necklace of 410 oval and marquise-shaped diamonds. In the rough state, the diamond appeared to be a light honey color; after cutting, however, it proved to be a rich golden brown, with overtones of sienna and burnt orange, the warm colors of the brown chrysanthemum after which the stone was named.

The Great Chrysanthemum as seen in GIA's Diamonds - Famous, Notable and Unique.The Great Chrysanthemum has been exhibited by several retail jewelers in the United States and was shown as a Diamonds International Awards winner in 1965. In the same year, it was displayed at the Rand Easter Festival in Johannesburg, South Africa. Julius Cohen later sold to it an unknown foreign buyer. Source: Diamonds - Famous, Notable and Unique by GIA.


A replica of the Great Chrysanthemum Diamond cut from cubic zirconium. The stone was cut by Hubert Rackets of the Texas Faceters Guild.

The Golden Jubilee - Famous Diamond

Gabi Tolkowsky examines the diamond with a jeweler's loupe. The Golden Jubilee is the largest faceted diamond in the world, weighing 545.67 carats. The stone was designed by Gabi Tolkowsky, who also designed the 273.85-carat Centenary Diamond, which is the largest D-Flawless diamond in the world. The Golden Jubilee was presented to the King of Thailand in 1997 for his Golden Jubilee - the 50th anniversary of his coronation. Prior to this event, the stone was simply known as the Unnamed Brown.



Tolkowsky describes the Golden Jubilee's cut as a "fire rose cushion cut." The color has been graded as "fancy yellow-brown", even though the above photo makes it look almost dark orange. It is only 15.37 carats larger than the Cullinan I, also known as the Star of Africa


A small photo of the Golden Jubilee I managed to salvage from the DeBeers website. Trivia Tidbit: The government of Thailand reported the stone as being a large golden topaz so as not to irritate the citizens -- Thailand has been in financial trouble for some years now, and the news of the purchase of the massive diamond would only make the popularity of the government drop.


A barely decent photo of the Golden Jubilee sitting on a cushion. I wish the stone was more publicized because then I wouldn't have to settle for tiny or grainy photos.

The Excelsior - Famous Diamond

The Excelsior I, set in an elaborate bracelet by Mouawad.On may 28th, 1971, a sad but inevitable event in mining history occurred: operations finally stopped at the Jagersfontein Mine. Not long before, the mine had celebrated its centenary, the first diamond having been picked up in the Jagersfontein valley in the Orange Free State in August of 1870. Although Jagersfontein was the first South Africa 'pipe' or 'dry diggings' to have been established, its fame was always overshadowed by the mines in the Kimberly district, about 130 km northwest. Yet the output of the mine was great enough to inspire the term "Jagers" to denote a diamond with a beautiful faint bluish tint. In addition Jagersfontein was the source of two of the largest and finest diamonds ever found. The earlier of these discoveries caused the most dramatic moment in the mine's history. On the evening of June 30th, 1893, an African picked up an immense diamond in a shovel of gravel which he was loading into a truck; he hid it from his overseer and delivered it directly to the hands of the Mine Manager. As a reward he received £500 plus a horse equipped with a saddle and bridle. The diamond weighed 971 old carats, equivalent to 995.2 metric carats. It possessed the fore mentioned blue-white color characteristic of the finest Jagersfontein diamonds, especially cleavages, and was of very fine quality, although there were a number of internal black spots, another Jagersfontein characteristic. The shape of the stone was out of the ordinary: flat on one side and rose to a peak on the other, somewhat like a loaf of rye bread. Apparently this is what inspired the diamond to be named 'Excelsior', meaning higher. The Excelsior may justly lay claim to be the 'Great Unknown' of famous diamonds. As will be explained further along, there is no single Excelsior fragment of exceptional size which would have helped to keep its name in the public eye, thus helping keep track of the fragments. In addition, except for having stimulated some interest among local diggers, the finding of such a large stone seems to have made singularly little impact. No account of the discovery appeared in the more authoritative and prestigious British newspapers which often reported lesser discoveries at the time. Maybe if the diamond had been originally been given a less unglamorous name its fame might have spread further outside of South Africa. Yet consider the facts ... before the discovery of the Excelsior the only rival to the stone was the legendary Great Mogul, of Indian origin, generally thought to have weighed 787½ old carats in the rough. The so-called Braganza Diamond, which was found in Brazil in the 1700s and according to some sources weighed 1680 carats, was considered to have been a white sapphire, topaz or light aquamarine, very unlikely a diamond. So the the Excelsior still ranks as the second largest rough diamond of gem quality ever found, only the Cullinan being larger. After various highs and lows the Jagersfontein Mine eventually became the sole property of the New Jagersfontein Mining & Exploration Company Limited, formed in April of 1887. It so happened that on the very day the Excelsior was found the contract between the mining company and the consortium of London firms which purchased the mine's output expired. If the diamond had been found a few hours earlier it would have made a substantial difference in profit to the parties concerned. However, the Excelsior was shipped to the London offices, located at 29 and 30 Holborn Viaduct, of Messieurs Wernher, Beit & Co., the largest of the ten firms that comprised of the London consortium. Wernher, Beit & Co. sought to insure the diamond for £40,000 but could only get insurance to the extent of £16,250. In the Directors' Report for the year ended March 31st, 1894, the Chairman of the New Jagersfontein Mining & Exploration Company stated: "In addition to the foregoing the Company still retains an undivided one-half share in the 'Excelsior' diamond weighing 971 carats, found on 30 June, 1893, which (although it is impossible at the present moment to place any exact value upon, and therefore has not been stocked at all) will ultimately prove a very valuable asset in the Company." The diamond remained in London where it was joined in 1895 by the second of the two large diamonds to have originated in the Jagersfontein. This weighed 634 carats, equivalent to 650.8 metric carats, and was first named the "Reitz" after F.W. Reitz, then president of the Orange Free State. It was renamed the 'Jubilee' when it was cut in 1897, the year of Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee; the 75th anniversary of her coronation. Accordingly the Chairman of the Mining Company, at the Annual General Meeting held in Kimberly on May 28th, 1896 stated: "Since the last meeting a large and very fine diamond of 634 carats, named the Reitz Diamond, has been found, and although neither the 'Excelsior' nor this recent acquisition has yet been disposed of, your Directors have deemed it advisable, in the interests of the present shareholders, to stock the Company's one half interest in both diamonds, but the actual figure, as will be obvious to all, it is most injudicious to state publicly."



Excelsior I bracelet The very next day after this meeting, the minutes of a Company Board meeting recorded the receipt of the following letter to the Secretary, New Jagersfontein Mining & Exploration Co. Limited, Kimberly: "Dear Sir, I beg to inform you that the Messrs Wernher, Beit & Co., Barnato Bros & Mosenthal Sons & Co. have accepted your offer to buy your company's half interest in the two stones called the 'Excelsior' and 'Reitz' Diamonds weighing 971 and 634 carats respectively for the sum of £25,000 (twenty-five thousand pounds) cash. "It is specially agreed upon that the price paid above is not to be disclosed outside the Diamond committee or your Board of Directors. "I should thank you to confirm the terms of this letter and on receipt of your reply pay your company the stipulated £25,000 on behalf of the above-named firms. I am, Dear Sir, Yours faithfully, Herrman Hirche." The minutes continue: "Resolved that the above sale be accepted and the Secretary was instructed to confirm the same." Thus was concluded what can only be described as one of the most profitable transactions - from the purchaser's point of view - ever to have been made in the diamond trade. As a result of the sale the Jubilee crystal was cut the following year into two gems. The larger of the two was a rectangular cushion shape weighing 245.35 carats, which would rank as the sixth largest polished diamond in the world. But no buyer appeared on the scene for the Excelsior crystal and eventually in 1903, it was sent to I.J. Asscher of Amsterdam. This famous company, destined to cut the Cullinan diamond crystal, had been founded by Mr. J.J. Asscher (1843-1902). Yet another misfortune dogged the Excelsior, since it was destined not to become one of those diamonds which yields a single magnificent gem, instead it was cut into a number of smaller ones. There were suggestions that no prospective buyer could be found due to the diamond's extraordinary size. In his book, Some Dreams Come True, by Alpheus F. Williams, who succeeded his father as General Manager of De Beers, entertained no doubts about the subject, considering the decision to cleave the diamond into several smaller fragments as the greatest tragedy of modern times in the history of famous diamonds. he wrote: "It was unpardonable that this exquisite diamond was so cleaved that the largest stone cut from it weighed only 70 metric carats. The intrinsic value meant more to its owners than its historical importance, so different from the spirit of the owners of the Cullinan diamond who, in deciding to have the diamond cleaved into nine pieces, insisted that one of the pieces so cleaved should be, when cut, the largest diamond in the world." On the other hand two points should be kept in mind when considering this extract from Mr. Williams' book. First, it will be recalled that the owners of the Excelsior had also been the owners of the Jubilee; no accusation, therefore could be leveled at them of necessarily wanting to place value before historical importance so as the Jubilee had been fashioned to yield one truly exceptional gem. Secondly, a comparison between the Cullinan and Excelsior diamonds is meaningless -- the Cullinan had only one large imperfection in the heart, the Excelsior possessed numerous dark inclusions. Dutch cutters, the world's best, decided this meant considerable loss of weight. After prolonged study it was decided to first cleave the diamond into ten pieces: this operation which was performed by Mr. A. Asscher, resulting in the three largest pieces weighing 158, 147 and 130 carats. The polishing was supervised by Henry Koe and yielded 21 gems, ranging from 70 carats to less than 1 carat. They totaled 373.75 carats which represented a loss in weight of almost 63 percent. The final result, however, was considered to have been better than anyone had expected. The specifications of the larger gems cut from the Excelsior are as follows: (metric carats)Excelsior I ... 69.68 carats ... pear shapeExcelsior II ... 47.03 carats ... pear shapeExcelsior III ... 46.90 carats ... pear shape (the Rovensky?)Excelsior IV ... 40.23 carats ... marquiseExcelsior V ... 34.91 carats ... pear shapeExcelsior VI ... 28.61 carats ... marquiseExcelsior VII ... 26.30 carats ... marquiseExcelsior VIII ... 24.31 carats ... pear shapeExcelsior IX ... 16.78 carats ... pear shapeExcelsior X ... 13.86 carats ... pear shapeExcelsior XI ... 9.82 carats ... pear shape The Excelsior gems were sold separately, three of them were bought by Tiffany & Co., in their old store in Union Square in New York City. The names of the other buyers have not been disclosed but it is known that De Beers displayed one of the marquise-shaped fragments at the 1939 World's Fair in New York.



In January of 1984 Graff Diamonds Limited of London announced the acquisition and subsequent sale of five exceptional diamonds among a series of transactions to clients. The most historic stone was the Excelsior I which according to Laurence Graff, had remained in the possession of the same family in the United States until his firm's purchase of it. The gem reappeared for sale in May of 1991. The GIA certified it as 'G' color and VS2 clarity. In May of 1996 reappeared yet again for sale and was bought by Robert Mouawad for $2,642,000. It is possible that two more of the larger gems cut from the Excelsior rough may have come to light within recent years. At an exhibition called The Court of Jewels presented by Harry Winston Inc. in San Antonio, Texas in 1949, there was a 40-carat marquise measuring 25.4 by 19 mm. Little appears to have been known about this diamond before its purchase from Harry Winston by a prominent American family. Could it have been the Excelsior IV? On January 23rd, 1957, a diamond necklace with a pendant, owned by Mrs. John E. Rovensky came up for auction at Parke-Bernet Galleries. The pendant was a pear-shaped diamond weighing approximately 46.50 carats. Since it had originally been purchased from Tiffany's, is there not a distinct possibility that this gem was none other than the Excelsior III?

The Eureka Diamond - Famous Diamond

This 10.73-carat brilliant is not, by ordinary standards, exceptional. However, it was cut from the first diamond found in South Africa and therefore has historical significance. In 1866 a shepherd boy found a small, shiny stone on the south bank of the Orange River near Hopetown. The pebble was kept for a while by a 15-year-old boy named Erasmus Jacobs, who later gave it to his neighbor, farmer Schalk van Niekerk, a collector of unusual stones. Van Niekerk entrusted the pebble to John O'Reilly, a traveling peddler, who sent it, in an unsealed envelope, to Dr W.G. Atherstone of Grahamstown, one of the few people in the Cape Colony who knew anything about minerals and gems. Dr Atherstone identified it as a 21.25-carat brownish yellow diamond. It was sold for £1500 to Sir Phillip Wodehouse. The diamond was shown at the Paris Exposition in 1867 and later cut to its present form. Although Erasmus Jacobs never found another diamond, Van Niekerk was luckier. Three years later, having learned something of precious stones, he bought what became known as the Star of South Africa.

The Dresden Green - Famous Diamond

In the rough, greenish diamonds tend to occur as one of three types: a stone, often a crystal shape, possessing a light tinge rather like the color of water in a swimming pool; a stone with a dark green skin; a yellowish-green stone characterized by a degree if lubricity. After being cut and polished, diamonds of the first and second types usually lose their greenish color to become white gems or, alternatively, light yellow stones known as "silvery capes". The few truly green faceted diamonds therefore originate from the third type. The famous collection of De Beers Fancy Colored Diamonds, which has been displayed throughout the world includes some beautiful examples of green diamonds. Since this is the story of a truly rare gem, a scientific explanation for the phenomenon of green diamonds is needed. The green color is usually caused by the crystal's coming into contact with a radioactive source at some point during its lifetime, and in geological terms, this is measured in millions of years. The most common form of irradiation diamonds chance into is through bombardment by alpha particles which are present in uranium compounds or percolating groundwater. Long exposure to these particles forms a green spot on the surface of the diamond, or sometimes produces a thin green coating which is only skin deep and can easily be removed during the faceting process. But bombardment by beta and gamma rays well as neutrons will color the stone to a greater depth and in some cases turn the whole stone's interior green. Heating the stone might sometimes improve the color but care must be taken to keep the temperature below 600°C, because at this temperature the green color is likely to turn to a light yellow or brown. The change in color is caused by the change in the crystal's lattice structure. Before bombardment by radioactive particles the crystal's lattice was stable but the initial radioactive shock was sufficient to disturb the equilibrium and produce a green coloration. Tempering will distort the lattice further and produce another change of color. This phenomena is analogous to a piece of elastic that has been overstretched; it will stretch back so far, but never returns to its original length. Similarly, after a treatment the diamond's lattice remains permanently distorted.



The Dresden Green out of its setting. Research has disclosed that green or irradiated diamonds are more common from alluvial deposits, although they are found in primary sources, usually in the upper part of the diamond-bearing volcanic pipe, but green diamonds of any size are rare. The Dresden Green, which probably weighed over 100 (old) carats in its rough form, is unique among world famous diamonds. It was originally probably an elongated unbroken stone since greenish diamonds rarely occur as cleavages. The Dresden Green gets its name from the capitol of Saxony where it has been on display for more than 200 years. The earliest known reference to its existence occurs in The Post Boy, a London new-sheet of the 1700's. The issue dated October 25th - 27th, 1722 included this article: "On Tuesday last, in the afternoon, one Mr. Marcus Moses, lately arrived from India, had the honor to wait on his Majesty [King George I (ruled 1714-27)] with his large diamond, which is of a fine emerald green color, and was with his Majesty near an hour. His Majesty was very much pleased with the sight thereof. It is said there never was seen the like in Europe before, being free from any defect in the world; and he has shown his Majesty several other fine large diamonds, the like of which 'tis said were never brought from India before. He was also, the 25th, to wait on their Royal Highnesses with his large diamond; and they were surprised to see one of such largeness, and of such a fine emerald color without the help of a foil under it. We hear the gentlemen values it at £10,000." Marcus Moses was an important diamond merchant in London during the first part of the 18th century - he had once been involved with the Regent Diamond. Another early reference to the Dresden Green is found in a letter dated from 1726, from Baron Gautier, the "assessor" at the Geheimes Rath's Collegium in Dresden, to the Polish ambassador in London, which speaks of the green diamond being being offered to Frederick Augustus I (1694-1753) by a London merchant for £30,000. This ruler, known as Augustus the Strong, was responsible for the construction of some great buildings in Dresden, which he duly filled with great collections of rare and expensive treasures - sculptures, paintings, and objects d'art. He accumulated a collection of crown jewels as the ruler of Saxony, and when he was elected to the throne of Poland in 1697 he commanded new regalia be made for his coronation. Frederick Augustus set aside a group of rooms in Dresden Castle to house his collection of jewels and other treasures, and named them the Green Vault, their interior decoration being trusted to Persian designers. The final result was considered to be one of the finest examples of Baroque. Nowadays, the contents of the Green Vault is housed in a contemporary Albertinium Museum, built on the site of the original castle that was destroyed during World War II. A model of the green diamond was owned by the eminent physicist Sir Hans Sloane (1660-1753), whose collection of books, manuscripts and curiosities formed the basis of the British Museum. When Sloane retired from active work in 1741 his library and cabinet of curiosities had grown to be of unique value and on his death he bequeathed his collection to the nation, on the condition that Parliament pay his executors £20,000. The bequest was accepted and went to help form the British Museum, opened to the public in 1759. Neither George I nor Frederick Augustus I purchased the green diamond; instead it was the latter's son, Frederick Augustus II (1733-1763) who became its first royal owner. He bought the Dresden Green from a Dutch merchant named Delles, at the Leipzig Fair in 1741. Various figures are given for the purchase price but the most interesting was found in a letter to Frederick the Great, King of Prussia (1712-1786), which states that "For the siege of Brünn the King of Poland was asked for heavy artillery. He refused due to the scarcity of money; he had just spent 400,000 thaler for a large green diamond." On orders of Frederick Augustus II, the court jeweler, Dinglinger, set the diamond in the Decoration of the Golden Fleece, but this setting lasted for only four years and was broken up in 1746. The king then commissioned the goldsmith Pallard in Vienna, to design another Golden Fleece incorporating both the Dresden Green and the Dresden White, a cushion-shaped diamond weighing 49.71 carats.

The Golden Fleece ornament with the Dresden White (top). The center third of the ornament which encompasses the Dresden Green was saved from disassembly and remains part of the present ornament. From 1756 to 1763 during the continued hostilities of the Seven Years War, the contents of the Green Vault were removed for safety to the fortress of Königstein, located in southeast Dresden by the Elba River. Several years after the war, which saw the defeat of Saxony, Pallard's Golden Fleece ornament was also broken up. In 1768 another jeweler, Diessbach, worked the green diamond into a hat clasp along with two other white brilliants, weighing almost 40 carats total, and a number of smaller diamonds. The Dresden Green survives in Diessbach's ornament today. In 1806 Saxony became a kingdom and the royal line continued until 1918 when the last king abdicated. The contents of the Green Vault remained on display to the public until the beginning of World War II. In 1942 they were removed again to Königstein, thus escaping the shattering air raid by the Allied Forces on the night of February 13th, 1945 which divested Dresden. Later that same year the Soviet Trophies Commission, which had made its headquarters in Pillnitz Castle near the center of the ruined city, took the contents of the Green Vault to Moscow, the Crown jewels being among the first items to travel there. They were returned in 1958.
The Dresden Green's facet layout, captured from its Gemcad file. This design originally appeared in the winter, 1990 issue of Gems & Gemology, and was converted into Gemcad by Robert Strickland in 1998. It is the most faithful retro-engineered replica of the Dresden Green I have ever seen, and thus, can be checked off of the list of famous diamonds to be converted into Gemcad.The Gemological Institute of America examined the stone in 1988. The Dresden Green Diamond was proved to be not only of extraordinary quality, but also a rare type IIa diamond. The clarity grade determined by GIA was VS1 and the gem has the potential of being internally flawless. (This means that the stone's flaws are near the outer surface, probably the pavilion of the stone, where a slight re-cutting could remove them and improve the clarity of the stone.) The gem measures 29.75 × 19.88 × 10.29mm. Unbelievably, the GIA graded the symmetry good and the polish very good. This is amazing for a diamond cut prior to 1741. Also, the Dresden Green has a natural green body color. This is extremely rare. Diamonds with green skins or scattered green patches are more common.


Another photo of the Dresden Green, photographedfrom the underside with the culet facing outward.In the summer of 2000, Ronald Winston completed arrangements for the Dresden Green to be exhibited in October, 2000, in the Harry Winston Gallery at the Smithsonian Institution, alongside the world's most famous diamond: the Hope. The 40.70-carat Dresden Green the largest and finest natural green diamond ever found, has long been considered a "sister" to the Hope Diamond, which it closely matches in size, intensity of color, and historical importance. Friday, October 14th, marked the official public opening of this remarkable exhibition. It was the twelve-year quest of Ronald Winston to bring these two diamonds together. "There is only one other diamond, the Dresden Green, which comes close to the Hope Diamond in rarity and uniqueness," said Ronald Winston. "I always hoped that in my lifetime I would be able to witness the Hope Diamond and the Dresden Green on exhibit together. This would have been the crown in my father's 'Court of Jewels,' an unparalleled collection which toured the country in the 1950's and included some of the most famous diamonds in history." The Dresden Green remained at the Smithsonian until January of 2001, when it returned the Albertinium Museum in Dresden, where it remains to this day. Sources: The Harry Winston website, Famous Diamonds by Ian Balfour, The Nature of Diamonds by George E. Harlow, the Gemstone Forecaster, and various sites scattered around the internet.

The De Young Red - Famous Diamond

A red diamond weighing in at 5.03 carats. The cut is a round brilliant, but as you can see, the main kite-shaped facets on the crown are horizontally divided in two, giving the stone slightly more brilliance than a standard round brilliant. This stone was once bought at estate sale mistakenly as a red garnet! (It is not a pure red, however, there is a slight brown hue to the stone, which is what makes it appear more like a fine garnet than ruby like the Hancock Red and the Red Shield.) It is the third largest red diamond in the world. The second largest is simply known as the Red Diamond, an emerald cut weighing 5.05 carats. The diamond was found as a rough in South Africa in 1927, and was later bought and put in a private collection, unfortunately its whereabouts are presently unknown. The first largest is the Moussaieff Red, a very fine Internally Flawless ruby-red diamond cut by the William Goldberg Diamond Corporation from a 13.90-carat rough and sold to the Moussaieff jewelry firm sometime around the year 2001. At 5.11 carats, it weighs just slightly more than the previously mentioned diamond. The De Young Red is in the Smithsonian Museum in Washington D.C. A red diamond surrounded by white diamonds set in brooch sold at Christie's Hong Kong auction May 1st, 2001 for about $300,000. The Fancy Red center diamond was only 0.73-carat and was I1 clarity. I am still trying to find out more about that stone.


The De Young Red sitting in its display case, lit with a fiber optic light.

The De Beers - Famous Diamond

Not long after the formation of De Beers Consolidated Mines Limited in March 1888, a huge light yellow octahedral crystal was found in the De Beers Mine. The gem weighed 428.50 old carats (old carats being the pre-1913 non-metric carat) and measured 47.6 mm through its longest axis and 38.1 mm square. Excluding Victoria, aka the Great White or Jacob, the source of which remains doubtful, the De Beers was the largest diamond found at the four mines at Kimberly during the time period. Weighing 234.65 carats, the De Beers is the seventh largest faceted diamond in the world, not including the Nizam, a now-lost stone which is said to have been only partially cut. It isn't known where the De Beers was cut, but because of its pre-eminence as a cutting center at the time it is very likely that the work was carried out in Amsterdam.


In this photo the stone appears to be a deeper shade of yellow than it actually is. After its display in Paris the Maharaja of Patiala bought the De Beers. In 1928 Cartier of Paris set it as the centerpiece of a ceremonial necklace that came to be known as the Patiala Necklace. Sometime during the 1930's the diamond was acquired by its present owners who loaned it in 1973 for an exhibition in Israel.



The Patiala Necklace is a candidate for one of the mostspectacular pieces of jewelry ever created. After the end of the Raj, the art deco Patiala Necklace disappeared. Then in 1998, someone came upon the remnants of it in a second hand jewelry shop in London. All of the big stones were gone: seven stones ranging from 18 to 73 carats, set above a pendant, and the 234.69-carat De Beers Diamond, seventh largest in the world. Cartier acquired the remains of the necklace and spent four years restoring it. They tried recreating the original replacing the missing diamonds with a variety of natural stones such as white sapphires or white topazes, but with disappointing results. Back to the diamonds. The original diamonds were of course not available including the De Beers Diamond itself. While the search for replacements continues, Cartier decided to use cubic zirconium to substitute for the seven diamonds and synthetic rubies to substitute for the original Burmese marvels. A replica of the De Beers Diamond was created and set in the necklace, but what type of synthetic material used has not been released to the press. (One source actually said synthetic yellow sapphire, but this would have taken a prohibitively long time to cut and polish due to the immense size of the replica and the fact sapphire is a very tough stone, being a 9 on the Mohs hardness scale. Therefore, it is more than likely than yellow cubic zirconium was used, and another clue is that in a number of photos of the necklace, the De Beers replica casts off a number of different colors, something a synthetic yellow sapphire wouldn't do to that degree, but which a yellow cubic zirconium would.) The necklace originally contained about 2,930 diamonds weighing about 962.25 carats. On May 6th, 1982, the De Beers came up for auction at Sotheby's in Geneva. It was generally thought that bidding could reach as much as $4.5 million. At the event the stone was bought when the top bid of $3.16 million remained below its undisclosed reserve. In his book Precious Stones and Gems, Edwin Streeter has unwittingly been the cause of some confusion concerning this diamond. He wrote that it was shown at the Paris Exhibition as the "Victoria"; this has led to the listing in some publications of a diamond called the Victoria I, weighing 228.50 old carats, also found in 1888 and also a light yellow color, and afterwards sold to an Indian prince. A mathematical calculation will show that this is the same stone as the De Beers and not to be confused with the diamond known variously as the Imperial, Great White or Jacob, a diamond which was cut into a cushion shape of 184.50 carats. Sources: Diamonds - Famous, Notable and Unique by GIA, Famous Diamonds by Ian Balfour, the Cartier website, and numerous articles on the internet.