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| Tereschenko diamond,en.wikipedia.org |
“It's hard to be a diamond in a rhinestone world.”
― Dolly Parton, famous US country music singer
From Marilyn Monroe to Katrina Kaif, Bollywood actress, women's love affair with dazzling diamonds has not yet lost its sheen. Why do women have hugger -mugger relationship with captivating and sparkling diamonds? Is it due to the fact that it is a symbol of eternal love between the man and woman? However, possession of diamond, be it small, gives the owners a sense of security and confidence. Romantic love and diamonds are symbolic of unbreakable bond between two souls. Because of its unique pervasive influence on humans, the aura of diamonds has seeped into many cultures across the world. India is not only the largest supplier of finished diamonds in the world, but also one of a few largest consumers of diamonds in the world as well next to USA.
Tereschenko is the second largest blue diamond stone in the world, only next to the Hope diamond, pear-shaped weighing 42.92 carat. The detailed information about this rare blue diamond is vague. Details such as the earliest and subsequent owners, origin of the country - the place where it was mined and where it was cut, etc are hard to find. As for the origin of this interesting diamond, it is a matter of debate. However, judging from some facts, a clear picture emerges as to its origin. In the past only two well-known diamond mines Kollur mines , India and Premier mines in Transvaal S. Africa yielded over a period of time high quality diamonds, including rare blue diamonds in the world, particularly the former yielded famous diamonds such as Kohinoor, Hope, etc. The Premier mines was started in 1902 and there is no record of production of blue diamonds in the 20th century, so, the possibility is this rare blue diamond must have come from the Kollur diamond mines, near Golconda (near Hyderabad) in the newly formed state of Telengana, South India.
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| Mikhail Tereschenko.en.wikipedia.org |
As per the records, owners of this blue diamond were the affluent Russian family of Tereschenko. The Tereschenkos owned sugar mills and vast track of lands and, no doubut, they had considerable political clout. One Mikhail Ivanovich Tereschenko had close and influential connections with the government in power and held some responsible, key positions in 1917. Luck ran out on him and after the October revolution in which the Bolshevik Party seized power, he was unfortunately imprisoned. However, in the Spring of 1918, he managed to escape from jail and finally settled in France. There he got in touch with Cartiers in Paris with whom he had deposited the blue diamond for safety a few years before the political upheaval In Russia.
The Tereschenko diamond was part of unique necklace made of colored diamonds and this blue diamond occupied the centerpiece. This fancy and unique necklace was custom made by Cartiers on orders from Mikhail Tereschenko in 1915. The jewel was one of a kind in combining 46 marquise, round, pear and heart-shaped diamonds ranging from 0.13 to 2.88 carats. Their colors were described as "jonquil, lemon, aquamarine, sultana-green, golden button, grey, blue, crevet, lilac, rose, old port, madeira and topaz." At that time it was adjudged as the most fascinating piece of creation of the 20th century in fancy colored diamond. While in Paris Mikhail Ivanovich sold it an anonymous buyer
Finally the diamond ended up for sale on 14 November 1984 at Christie's venue of auction in Geneva - the Hotel Richmond Inn. The well attended auction saw the bidding price moving steadily upward and finally settled at 10 million Swiss francs, a whooping sum and a record price. The new owner was one Robert Mouawad, a well known diamond dealer and jeweler. The present value of this stone is roughly $ 20 million plus and the diamond has been renamed Mouawad Blue.
If you go back on the early history of the diamond and its journey from Kollur mines of Golconda (during the reigns of the Qutub Shahi dynasty-1518-1687) to Russia it is a mystery and a matter of conjuncture. One logical possibility is the rulers of Golconda
had close relationship with the Persian rulers.
The Tereschenko family, it is likely, might have gotten the blue diamond through a Persian diamond trader.Hence the Diamond surfaced in Russia prior to Russian revolution.
Ref:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tereshchenko_diamond
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