The Koh-I-Noor Diamond

Taking advantage of an Oriental custom, Nadir Shah invited his captive to a feast and suggested they exchange turbans. Retiring from the feast, he unrolled the turban and released the great gem. Seeing it he cried "Koh-i-Noor!" (Mountain of Light). The gem went back to Persia with Nadir Shah, but he was assassinated in 1747 and the diamond was fought over by his successors. It was in the jewel chamber of Lahore, capital of Punjab, but when that state was annexed to British India in 1849, the East India Company took it as a partial indemnity for the Sikh Wars. The KOH-I-NOOR was presented to Queen Victoria in 1850 to mark the 250th anniversary of the founding of the East India Company. When the large stone was displayed at the Crystal Palace Exposition, people were disappointed that the diamond did not show more fire. So, Victoria decided to have it recut, which reduced the 186-carat diamond to its present size. In 1911 a new crown was made for the coronation of Queen Mary with the KOH-I-NOOR as the center stone. In 1937, it was transferred to the crown of Queen Elizabeth (now Queen Mother) for her coronation. It is now on display with the British Crown Jewels in the Tower of London.