Top 5 Most Notorious Cursed Diamonds

“Hope”

The latest and bloodiest – sapphire-blue diamond, with a totally inappropriate name of his reputation – “Hope” ( “Hope”). Stone, weighing up to one hundred and fifteen carats of cut diamonds (carat equals 0.2 grams), was brought from India by the French merchant, traveler and jeweler Jean-Baptiste Tavernier, who, incidentally, is known for his depictions of the mines of Golconda. He presented it to King Louis XIV.

First, on whom the curse struck, was long-standing mistress of the king of the Marquis de Montespan. This passionate black-haired beauty, also intelligent and educated, who had to give birth to the King of eight children, received a diamond as a gift, immediately sick of the Sun King. Lady heart banished from the palace, and the diamond, has found its place on a lace jabot Louis XIV. Exactly seven months later, in 1715, the king did not part with the diamond, died. His successor, Louis XV hid “Hope” for many years in the royal treasury. Another of his mistress became infamous Marie Antoinette, who loved luxury dresses and beautiful stones. Her fate as the fate of her husband, well-known to all – the guillotine. His next known owner was George IV, who soon lost his mind. After that, the stone was sold to the banker Henry Thomas Hope. The person whose name is called the stone had been poisoned.

In 1910, Diamond bought for 550 thousand francs jeweler Pierre Cartier, which is why I immediately resold his family mfillionerov McLean. Edward McLean Bale was hereditary owner of the newspaper “Washington Post”, and his wife, Evelyn Walsh McLean owned diamond mines. Soon, the family lost heir, after which Mr. MacLean took to drink bitter and died. Alarmed by the family sold in 1958, “Hope,” a well-known philanthropist, Harry Winston, who later gave it to the Smithsonian Institution.

Today, the famous “Hope” is waiting for its new offering for bulletproof glass exposure.