Sancy
Encyclopedia
The Sancy, a pale yellow diamond
of 55.23 carats (11 g), was once reputed to have belonged to the Great Moguls of antiquity, but is more likely of India
n origin owing to its cut which is unusual by Western standards.
The shield-shaped stone comprises two back-to-back crowns (the typical upper half of a stone) but lacks any semblance to a pavilion (the lower portion of a stone, below the girdle or midsection).
The Sancy's known history began circa 1570 in Constantinople
when purchased by Nicholas Harlai, Seigneur de Sancy. He was popular in the French
Court and was later French Ambassador to Turkey
. Something of a gem
connoisseur, de Sancy used his knowledge to prosperous advantage.
Henry III
of France
suffered from premature baldness
and tried to conceal this fact by wearing a cap. As diamonds were becoming increasingly fashionable at the time, Henry arranged to borrow de Sancy's diamond to decorate his cap. Henry IV
also borrowed the stone, for the more practical purpose of using it as security for financing an army. Legend has it that a messenger carrying the jewel never reached his destination, but de Sancy (by then Superintendent of Finance) was convinced that the man was loyal and had a search conducted until the site of the messenger's robbery and murder was found. When the body was disinterred and autopsied, the jewel was found in the faithful man's stomach.
De Sancy later sold the diamond to James I
(successor of Queen Elizabeth
) about 1605 when it is thought the Sancy acquired its name. It was described in the Tower of London
's 1605 Inventory of Jewels as "...one fayre dyamonde, cut in fawcetts, bought of Sauncy."
The Sancy remained in England
until 1669 when it was briefly possessed by the unfortunate Charles I
(King of England, Scotland and Ireland) and then by his third son James II
. Beleaguered after a devastating defeat, James took shelter under Louis XIV of France
, a fickle host who tired of his exiled guest. Facing destitution, James had no choice but to sell the Sancy to Cardinal Mazarin for the reported sum of £
25,000. The cardinal bequeathed the diamond to the king.
The Sancy was thus domiciled in France but disappeared during the French Revolution
when brigands raided the Garde Meuble (Royal Treasury). As well as the Sancy, other treasures stolen were the Regent diamond
, and the French Blue diamond which is known today as the Hope diamond
.
The Sancy's history is unknown from then until 1828 when purchased by Prince Demidoff for £80,000. It remained in the Demidov family collection until 1865 when sold to Sir Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy, an Indian prince, for £100,000. He sold it only a year later, creating another gap in its history. It reappeared in 1867, displayed at the Paris Exposition
, carrying a price tag of one million franc
s; the gem then vanished again for forty years.
The Sancy next surfaced in 1906 when bought by William Waldorf Astor, 1st Viscount Astor
. The prominent Astor family
possessed it for 72 years until the 4th Viscount Astor sold it to the Louvre
for $
1 million in 1978. The Sancy now rests in the Apollo Gallery, sharing attention with the likes of the Regent
and the Hortensia.
Diamond
In mineralogy, diamond is an allotrope of carbon, where the carbon atoms are arranged in a variation of the face-centered cubic crystal structure called a diamond lattice. Diamond is less stable than graphite, but the conversion rate from diamond to graphite is negligible at ambient conditions...
of 55.23 carats (11 g), was once reputed to have belonged to the Great Moguls of antiquity, but is more likely of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n origin owing to its cut which is unusual by Western standards.
The shield-shaped stone comprises two back-to-back crowns (the typical upper half of a stone) but lacks any semblance to a pavilion (the lower portion of a stone, below the girdle or midsection).
The Sancy's known history began circa 1570 in Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
when purchased by Nicholas Harlai, Seigneur de Sancy. He was popular in the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Court and was later French Ambassador to Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
. Something of a gem
Gemstone
A gemstone or gem is a piece of mineral, which, in cut and polished form, is used to make jewelry or other adornments...
connoisseur, de Sancy used his knowledge to prosperous advantage.
Henry III
Henry III of France
Henry III was King of France from 1574 to 1589. As Henry of Valois, he was the first elected monarch of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth with the dual titles of King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1573 to 1575.-Childhood:Henry was born at the Royal Château de Fontainebleau,...
of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
suffered from premature baldness
Baldness
Baldness implies partial or complete lack of hair and can be understood as part of the wider topic of "hair thinning". The degree and pattern of baldness can vary greatly, but its most common cause is male and female pattern baldness, also known as androgenic alopecia, alopecia androgenetica or...
and tried to conceal this fact by wearing a cap. As diamonds were becoming increasingly fashionable at the time, Henry arranged to borrow de Sancy's diamond to decorate his cap. Henry IV
Henry IV of France
Henry IV , Henri-Quatre, was King of France from 1589 to 1610 and King of Navarre from 1572 to 1610. He was the first monarch of the Bourbon branch of the Capetian dynasty in France....
also borrowed the stone, for the more practical purpose of using it as security for financing an army. Legend has it that a messenger carrying the jewel never reached his destination, but de Sancy (by then Superintendent of Finance) was convinced that the man was loyal and had a search conducted until the site of the messenger's robbery and murder was found. When the body was disinterred and autopsied, the jewel was found in the faithful man's stomach.
De Sancy later sold the diamond to James I
James I of England
James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...
(successor of Queen Elizabeth
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
) about 1605 when it is thought the Sancy acquired its name. It was described in the Tower of London
Tower of London
Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...
's 1605 Inventory of Jewels as "...one fayre dyamonde, cut in fawcetts, bought of Sauncy."
The Sancy remained in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
until 1669 when it was briefly possessed by the unfortunate Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
(King of England, Scotland and Ireland) and then by his third son James II
James II of England
James II & VII was King of England and King of Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII, from 6 February 1685. He was the last Catholic monarch to reign over the Kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland...
. Beleaguered after a devastating defeat, James took shelter under Louis XIV of France
Louis XIV of France
Louis XIV , known as Louis the Great or the Sun King , was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre. His reign, from 1643 to his death in 1715, began at the age of four and lasted seventy-two years, three months, and eighteen days...
, a fickle host who tired of his exiled guest. Facing destitution, James had no choice but to sell the Sancy to Cardinal Mazarin for the reported sum of £
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
25,000. The cardinal bequeathed the diamond to the king.
The Sancy was thus domiciled in France but disappeared during the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
when brigands raided the Garde Meuble (Royal Treasury). As well as the Sancy, other treasures stolen were the Regent diamond
Regent Diamond
The Regent Diamond is a diamond which is on display in the Louvre. In 1698, a slave found the 410 carat uncut diamond in a Golkonda mine, more specifically Paritala-Kollur Mine in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India and concealed it inside of a large wound in his leg. An English sea captain stole...
, and the French Blue diamond which is known today as the Hope diamond
Hope Diamond
The Hope Diamond, also known as "Le bleu de France" or "Le Bijou du Roi", is a large, , deep-blue diamond, now housed in the Smithsonian Natural History Museum in Washington, D.C. It is blue to the naked eye because of trace amounts of boron within its crystal structure, but exhibits red...
.
The Sancy's history is unknown from then until 1828 when purchased by Prince Demidoff for £80,000. It remained in the Demidov family collection until 1865 when sold to Sir Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy, an Indian prince, for £100,000. He sold it only a year later, creating another gap in its history. It reappeared in 1867, displayed at the Paris Exposition
Paris Exposition
Paris Exposition or Paris Exhibition can refer to*The French Industrial Exposition of 1844-World's fair:* Exposition Universelle , The Paris Exposition of 1855* Exposition Universelle , The Paris Exposition of 1867...
, carrying a price tag of one million franc
Franc
The franc is the name of several currency units, most notably the Swiss franc, still a major world currency today due to the prominence of Swiss financial institutions and the former currency of France, the French franc until the Euro was adopted in 1999...
s; the gem then vanished again for forty years.
The Sancy next surfaced in 1906 when bought by William Waldorf Astor, 1st Viscount Astor
William Waldorf Astor, 1st Viscount Astor
William Waldorf Astor, 1st Viscount Astor was a very wealthy American who became a British nobleman. He was a member of the prominent Astor family.-Life in United States:...
. The prominent Astor family
Astor family
The Astor family is a Anglo-American business family of German descent notable for their prominence in business, society, and politics.-Founding family members:...
possessed it for 72 years until the 4th Viscount Astor sold it to the Louvre
Louvre
The Musée du Louvre – in English, the Louvre Museum or simply the Louvre – is one of the world's largest museums, the most visited art museum in the world and a historic monument. A central landmark of Paris, it is located on the Right Bank of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement...
for $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
1 million in 1978. The Sancy now rests in the Apollo Gallery, sharing attention with the likes of the Regent
Regent Diamond
The Regent Diamond is a diamond which is on display in the Louvre. In 1698, a slave found the 410 carat uncut diamond in a Golkonda mine, more specifically Paritala-Kollur Mine in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India and concealed it inside of a large wound in his leg. An English sea captain stole...
and the Hortensia.