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The Tiffany Yellow Diamond
The Tiffany diamond, one of the finest
brilliant diamonds and largest fancy yellow diamonds ever
discovered and one of the most famous diamonds in the world, inspiring the 1961
movie Breakfast at Tiffany's starring Audrey Hepburn.
The Tiffany Yellow was valued at $12,000,000 at the end of 1983.
No major gemological organization has ever formerly examined the Tiffany Yellow
- read more news here.
The Tiffany was discovered in 1878 in the Kimberley
diamond mine in South Africa and weighed 287.42 carats in the rough. The
rough diamond was cut into a cushion shape of 128.54 carats with 90 facets - 32 more than a traditional round brilliant - to maximize its brilliance.
| This photo shows
the Tiffany "Bird on a
Rock" diamond brooch setting designed in the1960's by famous
Tiffany & Co., New York
jeweler Jean Schlumberger. This
setting is the Tiffany Yellow's best known and present setting.
Breakfast at Tiffanys
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Long before Truman Capote's 1958 novel Breakfast
at Tiffany's
increased the prestige of the famous Tiffany's New York jewelry store,
the diamond had become an international household name. Audrey
Hepburn, as Holly Go Lightly started her day eating breakfast
at the jewelers amongst the magnificent gems on display in the showcase.
The Tiffany & Co jewellers was
founded by Charles Lewis Tiffany in 1837. The diamond merchant bought a large quantity of
jewels during the 1848 political disturbances in Paris, which cumulated in the over through of King Louis
Philippe.
During the French Revolution in 1877 the Crown Jewels
of France were auctioned. Tiffany's was the largest buyer, with 24 of the total 69
lots.
Included in the auction of historic
jewelry was a stunning diamond necklace of Empress Eugénie, considered at the time to have been the finest single item to go on
sale. The necklace featured four diamonds which may have been among the former
Mazarins.
Around the same time as this important
event in French history came the discovery of diamonds in South Africa. Tiffany's
diamond merchants were busy buying South African diamonds, including a light-yellow cushion of 77 (old) carats cut from a rough stone weighing fractionally less than 125 (old) carats and another fine yellow gem weighing 51 and 7/8 (old) carats.
These two diamonds were among the first large stones to be cut in the United
States.
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The Tiffany Diamond
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Much larger than these
diamonds is the famous gem named after its owners, Tiffany & Co.,
New York City.
In the rough, the stone was a
large canary yellow octahedron weighing 287.42 (metric) carats.
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The Tiffany Yellow Diamond was found in either 1877 or 1878. The finding of the Tiffany Yellow took place before accurate records of the discovery of large diamonds from South Africa were kept.
The correct date of its mining is debatable, so too is where it was
found. Sources quote the De Beers Mine and the Kimberly Mine, the De Beers
Mines or the Kimberly Mines.
One writer states the diamond was found in the mines of the
'French Company' - the colloquial name for the Compagnie Français de Diamant du Cap, an
important mining company, involved in the most momentous financial struggle which the
diamond industry has witnessed.
The historically important French Company claims the Tiffany Yellow
diamond in the rough was shipped to Paris. Experts there studied it for one year before it was cut under the supervision of the distinguished gemologist George F. Kunz in 1878.
The Tiffany diamond cut
The rough diamond Tiffany yielded a cushion-cut brilliant of 128.54 (metric) carats, measuring 27 mm wide, 28.25 mm long and 22.2 mm deep. It was given a total of 90 facets: 48 on the pavilion, 40 on the crown, plus the table and culet.
The brilliant diamond is gorgeous
and was designed to smoulder as if it was lit by fire. The gem is high in fluorescence and retains this rich color in artificial
light and is even more beautiful by day, when it sparkles because of the extra facets.
This was achieved due to distinction between light yellow and yellowish diamonds and those of the rare deeper canary
yellow. We discuss the Tiffany diamond cut
here.
The diamond is imported into the USA
Charles Tiffany employed a little publicity
policy amid fears that, as yellowish diamonds were being produced in South Africa in greater quantities than every before, this particular diamond might merely be one of many such
stones
Mr. Gideon Reed, head of Tiffany's office in Paris, bought the Tiffany Yellow for
$18,000 and imported the diamond into the United States in 1879.
Charles Tiffany attended the diamond after its arrival
there and the existence of the Tiffany Yellow attracted the right press and
became famous.
Diamond on display
Tiffany has been on continuous display for
more than 125 years in Tiffany's New York store since then and has been seen by millions of
visitors.
The history of the Tiffany diamond
includes numerous exhibitions: the 1893 Chicago Columbian, the 1901 Pan-American, the 1933-34
Chicago Century of Progress and the 1939 New York World's Fair.
The first occasion the diamond was worn in
public was the 1957 Tiffany Ball in Newport, Rhode Island, USA. Mrs. Sheldon
Whitehouse, chairwoman of the ball, wore a white diamond necklace mounted for the occasion
with the beautiful Tiffany diamond.
In 1971 the Tiffany Yellow toured to South Africa for the exhibition which marked the centennial celebrations of the Kimberly Mine.
Tiffany's re-opened their jewellery store in Old Bond Street London in 1986 and displayed the diamond to
England again.
Infamous diamond
Something as attractive as the Tiffany
attracts notoriety. Tiffany still causes debate amongst the gemological
associations to have a second
opinion on the appraisal of the diamond.
The diamond achieved infamy during
reported attempts to sell the diamond. In a move that mortified the old
board, a new chairman in 1951 recommended that the gem be sold and a buyer agreed to pay $500,000 for the stone but the deal fell through because the chairman wanted a check in full whereas the prospective buyer wished for other financial arrangements to be
made.
The New York Times carried an advertisement by Tiffany on November 17th, 1972
offering to sell the diamond for $5,000,000.
Legend has it one eager new salesman asked what he would get if he sold the famous
gem and was promptly
fired by the head of the firm.
No major gemological organization has ever formerly examined
or appraised the Tiffany Yellow so perhaps the valuation of $12,000,000 in 1983
is debatable though the figure is in the ballpark.
Addressing the controversy that this aspect of the diamond
legend creates is the
Herbert Tillander book Diamond Cuts in Historic Jewelry - 1381 to 1910.
Where to from here? See more read more about the Tiffany diamond -
Tiffany & Co Jewelers New York - Famous Diamonds
- Famous Gold Nuggets - Australian
Opals - Featuring The
Virgin Rainbow - 1960's Fashion
- Famous Gemstones and Jewelry - Crown Jewels
- Wedding Anniversary Gemstones
- Birthstones - The House of Faberge
- Celebrities wearing crucifix jewelry makes the Vatican cross
-
Hope Diamond - Taylor-Burton
- Mouawad Mondera - The
diamond the models are wearing
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