- Jewels of The Nizams
The Jewels of the Nizams of
Hyderabad state are the largest and richest collection ofjewels inIndia . The jewels belong to theNizams , considered among the wealthiest in the world at the time,weasel word ruled Hyderabad state from 18th century till theIndian independence .Only a fraction of the original collection is left, the range is large when translated into
carats . The 173 items of Jewels with over 25,000diamonds weighing over 12000carats . The 2000emerald s, some of themColombian , weight over 10,000 carats andpearls exceeding 40,000 chows.Once part of Nizams’ state
regalia and personalheritage , the ornaments date back to early 18th century to early 20th century. Crafted ingold andsilver and embellished with enameling, the jewels are set with Colombianemeralds , diamonds from the Golconda mines,Burmese rubies andspinels , andpearls fromBasra andGulf of Mannar .The value
The Jewelry is estimated to be over US$6 billion. In 1991,
Sotheby's estimated the collection at US$162million . The jewels were vaulted first withHSBC , and latterly with theReserve Bank of India in Bombay.Indian Government bought the jewels for Rs 218
crore (about US$70 million), after the death of seventh and last Nizam in 1967, when the Nizam Trust (descendants of the Nizams), owners of the jewels, tried to take them out of India.The Collection
The oranaments and gemstones have typical Deccani names like "Paizeb yakoot wa almas wa zamurrud", or as "Kanthi marvareed". The names for gemstones known as "Yakoot" is ruby; "almas" is diamond; "zamurrud" is emerald; and "marvareed" are pearls.
The
Deccani workmanship is evident in thearmband s, studded with diamonds and outlined with silver kundan work on the belt buckles. Golconda diamonds with a crest of pearls on the anklets and emerald adorned sarpech & kalghi(turban ornament), are part of the collection.The jewel collection include:1.
Gemstones 2.Turban ornaments. 3.Necklaces andpendant s 4. Belts andbuckles 5.Earrings 6.Armbands 7.Bangles andbracelets 8.Anklet s(paizeb) 9.Cufflinks andbuttons 10.Watch chain s 11. Rings 12.Toe ring s 13. Nose-ringsAmong them is the seven-stringed
Basrah pearl necklace, known asSatlada . The Satlada has 465 pearls embedded in it.The belt buckle has 55 carats of diamonds and 146 precious stones.
Jacob Diamond
"Main article":
Jacob Diamond TheJacob Diamond , known earlier as the "Imperial Diamond", weighing 184.79 carats, ranked seventh in the world, and almost double the size of theKohinoor diamond stands out among the entire collection [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/1513627.stm BBC News | SOUTH ASIA | Indian jewels set to dazzle ] ] . It is believed to have been found in anAfrican mine.Salar Jung Museum held exhibitions of the collection in 2005 and 2007 and is now back in the custody of Government of India,New Delhi .National Museum, New Delhi is exhibited them in September and October 2007.
References
Further reading
Jewels of the Nizams (Hardcover) by Usha R. Krishnan (Author)ISBN 81-85832-15-3 [http://www.amazon.com/Jewels-Nizams-Usha-R-Krishnan/dp/8175083069]
External links
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/1513627.stm BBC]
* [http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl1815/18150980.htm Feature on The Hindu]
* [http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=251461 expressindia.com]
* [http://www.tribuneindia.com/2001/20011021/spectrum/art.htm An account by a National Museum official]
* [http://youtube.com/watch?v=9r4MqYFIKJs Nizam's jewellery exhibit on Youtube]
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