Ill-fated Blood Diamonds | May 01, 2007 |
Blood diamonds – this way it is possible to call precious stones that are wrapped in a number of dark legends and human dramas. The most gorgeous, beautiful and expensive solitaires often became pitiless killers and broke a lot of people's lives.
There is even a world history of fatal diamonds existed.
But probably the most dramatic diamond is considered to be Hope Diamond. For a long period of time rich and poor people, emperors and peasants, thieves and just men went crazy looking at that unique stone.
The first victim of the stone became a Hindu priest who came under its spell more than 500 years ago. He stole it from an eye of an Indian idol standing in temple but was caught and died in tortures.
Soon after it the diamond appeared in Europe in 1642. It was in hands of a French smuggler Jean-Baptiste Tavernier. He got a lot of money for the diamond. But his son lost all his money. Jean-Baptiste sold everything he had to help his son. Tavernier went to India to try his luck once again but was broken to pieces by a pack of wild dogs.
Then King Louis XIV became the stone's owner. Soon after it the king died and the country remained poor and with military conflicts.
It is amazing but three more members of royal family died after they put the diamond into their crown.
Then the diamond traveled all around Europe and then got to Henry Thomas Hope – a wealthy Irish banker. Namely he gave the name to the diamond. His grandson died in complete poverty.
The blood trace of Hope Diamond was over only when famous American jeweler Harry Winston bought it and gave it to Smithsonian Institution in Washington.
All the biggest diamonds of the world have been cursed. They even say that namely because of Blue Tavernier famous Titanic went down.
Nevertheless people still strive to possess them because greediness and passion for money will never die.
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