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| Golconda Diamond newindianexpress.com |
The other diamonds at the New York auction included were
“portrait diamonds'' mined near Krishna river; “Extremely shallow, they consist of virtually nothing but two tables separated by a tiny row of girdle facets. They were sometimes used to cover miniature paintings to make the impressive and therefore came to be known as portrait diamonds.
The other highlight of the New York auction was the ‘The Nizam of Hyderabad Necklace’, made of an antique diamond, emerald and enamel necklace that the Nizams used to wear during parades. “The necklace has eight large diamonds in set, each having an estimated weight of 10.00 to 15.00 carats.Centuries ago diamond cutting industry was fairly in an advanced stage in India in the Golconda area and the modified brilliant-cut of these diamonds reflects the advancement of gem-faceting in India.
The costliest diamond under the hammer was the ‘Mirror of Paradise’ ring, a rectangular-cut 52.58-carat diamond. It has a platinum ring, and “flawless clarity”. It is estimated that it would fetch between $7 mn and $10 mn.
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| Arcot diamond II economictimes.indiatimes.com |
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| ''Evening Star'',diamond thenewsminute.com |
Tit-bits:
The Golconda Diamonds of India were once mined in a specific geographic area in the present-day Telangana and Andhra Pradesh states of South India. It was during the rule of Qutb Shahi dynasty (16th century-17th century CE), also known as the "Golconda Sultanate", diamonds from these mines called Kollur Mine) were taken to the city of Hyderabad to be cut, polished, evaluated and sold. Golconda town, close to Hyderabad became an important diamond trading center then and it flourished until the end of the 19th century. In the annals of Diamond History of the world in the by-gone era, the Golconda market was the primary source of the finest and largest diamonds in the world.
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| Diamond mining in India/en.wikipedia.org |
The name 'Golconda Diamond' became legendary and mark of quality and includes an array of world' most famous diamonds such the colorless Koh-i-Noor (Part of royal collection, UK; it is in the Crown), the blue Hope (United States), the pink Daria-i-Noor (Iran), the white Regent (France), the Dresden Green (Germany), and the colorless Orlov (Russia), Nizam (340 carats) and Jacob (India), as well as the now lost diamonds Florentine Yellow, Akbar Shah and Great Mogul (787 carats;1650).
One of the most popular diamond mines Kollur Mine was located near Guntur in Guntur district, Andhra Pradesh state. There were also other mines around the River Krishna alluvial deposits in South India.
The most intensive mining was done in a 60 km zone along the river bed. Along with diamonds, the region also became a trade center for metal ware, pearls, spices and textiles. According to The New Indian Express (22 October 2016), "the Hyderabad based historian, Muhammad Safiullah has mentioned that the ''estimated output from all mines in Golconda was around 12 million carats" absolutely mind-boggling. According to Manu S. Pillai, (The Hindu, 05 November 2016), Jean-Baptiste Tavernier, world famous French traveler and jeweler (believed to an expert in gem-quality diamonds claimed to have seen a flat diamond called the Great Table diamond kept in a dungeon in Golconda. Jean de Thévenot and François Bernier were also French traders in 'Golconda Diamonds'. Tavernier visited the Krishna River mines - mostly open-cast in 1665, and estimated that about 60,000 people were engaged in diamond mining. http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/hyderabad/2019/jun/10/hyderabads-golconda-diamonds-mined-during-qutub-shahi-period-to-fetch-millions-in-us-auction-1988281.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_mining_in_India
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/royal-auction-17-carat-golconda-diamond-arcot-iisold-for-rs-23-5-crore/articleshow/69869828.cms
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