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The "Star of The South" Diamond. Trouble In Paradise.
The Times of India reports this morning that The Star of the South, one of the most famous diamonds in the world, may become the latest bone of contention between scions of the royal Gaekwad family of Baroda.
Star of The South Diamond.
The 128.8-carat diamond has been shown as a part of the disputed property of the royal family, like the Baroda Pearls. But the diamond that surfaced in Mumbai has already been sold, while the hammer is yet to strike on Baroda Pearls at Christie's. The Star of the South was bought by Cartier.
The value of the diamond is estimated to be $94 million on the international market. In a recent book titled 'After Ambassadors, Before Dukes', author KRN Swamy dedicates an entire chapter 'The Most Flamboyant Maharani' to Sita Devi, the second wife of Maharaja Pratapsinh Gaekwad.
The author states, "The jewelry world lost traces of the Star of the South and English Dresden diamonds, until they emerged recently in Amsterdam, and were bought by the famous jeweler firm Cartier." Interestingly, Sangramsinh, the youngest son of Pratapsinh, has been claiming that the Star of the South is among the heirlooms that is under dispute and was in possession of the palace here.
"In fact, the diamond, along with other world famous diamonds like 'The Akbar Shah' and 'The Empress Eugenie', among others, was in the list of properties disclosed in wealth tax returns furnished by late Fatehsinhrao Gaekwad as on March 31 1988. Later even his wife Shantadevi had mentioned the diamond in her wealth tax returns," said Sangramsinh's lawyer Kailash Jethmalani. "We are tracing the route through which the diamond reached Cartier and are examining possible legal action," Jethmalani said.
Discovered in 1853 in Brazil by a slave woman working in a mine, gemologists record that the Star of the South was originally sold at a modest sum of $3,000, after which the purchaser disposed it in Rio de Janeiro for $30,000. The rough stone passed through many hands before it was sold to Costers of Amsterdam for $35,000 and cut to a cushion-shaped stone with a faint pinkish-brown hue.
It was purchased by Halphen and Associates of Paris and was given the name the Star of the South. It changed hands and eventually was sold to prince Malharrao. Its last recorded presence in India was in around 2002, when Cartier bought it from Rustomjee Jamsetjee of Mumbai.
"Breakfast at Tiffany's", this isn't.
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