Patiala Necklace

The Patiala Necklace was a necklace created by the House of Cartier in 1928.[1] It was made for Bhupinder Singh of Patiala, who was the Maharaja of the princely state of Patiala.[2]

Maharaja Yadavindra Singh of Patiala wearing the famous ʽPatiala Necklaceʼ1930s

The necklace had five chains (ladi) and included a neck collar.

The necklace contained 2,930 diamonds, including as its centrepiece the world's seventh-largest diamond at the time, the "De Beers". That diamond had a 428 carat pre-cut weigh, and it weighed 234.65 carats in its final setting.[3] It is the largest cushion-cut yellow diamond and the 2nd largest yellow faceted diamond in the world.The necklace also contained seven other large diamonds ranging from 18 to 73 carats, and a number of Burmese rubies.[4]

The necklace disappeared from the Royal Treasury of Patiala around 1948.[5]

In 1982, at a Sotheby's auction in Geneva, the "De Beers" diamond reappeared. There, the bidding went up to $3.16 million, but it is unclear whether it met its reserve price.[6][7]

In 1998, part of the necklace was found at a second-hand jewellery shop in London by Eric Nussbaum, a Cartier associate.[1] The remaining large jewels were missing, including the Burmese rubies and the 18 to 73 carat diamonds that were mounted on a pendant. Cartier purchased the incomplete necklace and, after four years, restored it to resemble the original. They replaced the lost diamonds with cubic zirconia and synthetic diamonds, and mounted a replica of the original "De Beers" diamond.[8][9][10][11]

The necklace is the subject of a documentary by Doc & Film International.[12]

A granddaughter of Bhupinder Singh of Patiala is now a jeweller [13] in California. She was involved in an exhibit "Maharaja: The Splendor of India's Royal Courts" at the Asian Art Museum, where the recreated necklace was displayed.

References
  1. "Jewels in Motion: The Patiala Necklace". www.thecourtjeweller.com. Retrieved 2018-03-04.
  2. "The Maharaja's Crown Jewels ~ The Patiala Necklace". Victoria Raj. Retrieved 2018-03-04.
  3. "Bhupinder Singh's necklace". www.livemint.com. Retrieved 2018-03-04.
  4. http://www.beau-rivage.ch/maj/pdf/carnets_de_route/UK/BAT_CDR_19-ANGLAIS_-_DEF.pdf Archived 2013-12-04 at the Wayback Machine.
  5. "The strange mystery of the Patiala Necklace – and its odd reappearance". coolinterestingstuff.com. Retrieved 2018-03-04.
  6. "The De Beers Diamond". famousdiamonds.tripod.com. Retrieved 2017-08-31.
  7. "De Beers Diamond - The Second-Largest Faceted Yellow Diamond". israelidiamond.co.il. Retrieved 2018-03-04.
  8. http://www.beau-rivage.ch/maj/pdf/carnets_de_route/UK/BAT_CDR_19-ANGLAIS_-_DEF.pdf Archived 2013-12-04 at the Wayback Machine.
  9. "The De Beers Diamond". Famousdiamonds.tripod.com. 1982-05-06. Retrieved 2011-08-27.
  10. "Patiala necklace, world's most expensive jewelry". Blueblood.co.in. Archived from the original on 2011-04-30. Retrieved 2011-08-27.
  11. "The missing necklace". The Hindu. 2004-02-16. Retrieved 2011-08-27.
  12. "The Patiala Necklace". Retrieved 2018-09-21.
  13. Lineage leads Jyotsna Singh to jewelry design, Michelle Devera, October 16, 2011
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