If you are a collector you understand how a hobby can become a bit of an obsession. Some people spend their life’s savings on their acquisitions, and some spend every free moment in pursuit of their passion. But, diamond collecting presents some serious limitations. If you were to be a collector of diamonds, the size of your collection would be limited by the size of your pocketbook. If you wanted to build a list of the “dream” collection it might include some of the following well-known collections, stones and remarkable pieces of diamond jewelry.The Aurora Diamond Collection is not an extensive selection of gold and silver baubles to adorn a woman from head to toe, but it is the most comprehensive collection of natural colored diamonds in the world. A total of 296 stones ranging in every color of the available spectrum make up this incredible collection. It has been the centerpiece of many special displays including one at the American Museum of Natural History and the exhibition in London at the Natural History Museum.
If a collection of uncut stones is not what you are seeking, then perhaps a unique piece of headwear will spark your interest? The diadem of Queen Maria Pia of Portugal, which she commissioned in 1863, contains over 563 diamonds. It is remarkable in design being composed entirely of five-point stars. The wearer of this crown will literally have their head framed by 25 gold stars set with diamonds.
A crown is not necessarily the most practical item for day to day use, but if practicality and diamonds can ever be combined it is world-famous actress Elizabeth Taylor who serves as a great example. As a token of affection from her then-husband Richard Burton she received the “Cartier Diamond,” which was subsequently renamed the “Taylor-Burton Diamond” after the $1.05 million stone was purchased by the actor. It was set in an elaborate necklace and worn by the actress at gala functions. But in 1978, with much common sense and charitable thought, the actress sold the stone to fund the establishment of a hospital in Botswana.
If smaller tokens are more appealing, then a collector could consider owning a book about diamonds, but taking it a bit farther than that, Catherine the Great of Russia decided to own a book surrounded by diamonds. Her famous “Gospel” crafted by Hermann Gottlieb Unger in 1794, is a copy of the well-known biblical Gospel with a binding and cover composed of gold, silver, diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, amethysts, aquamarines and artfully decorated with enamel.
Decorative household objects such as the Gospel belonging to Catherine the Great may not be what you are looking for, but if a decorative piece is desired there is little to compare with the “Bird on a Rock” setting used by Jean Schlumberger for the famous “Tiffany Diamond”. The enormous fancy yellow diamond, a whopping 287 carats, has never been examined by an official gemological organization, and is the subject of much debate about its unusual cutting and faceting.
If this is all too complicated then perhaps a plain, loose stone is the good way to begin a “dream” collection, and there is nothing to compare with the “Cullinan Diamond” found in South Africa in 1905. The rough diamond weighed 3106 carats and was eventually cut into 105 beautiful stones - the most famous and largest being the “Great Star of Africa” which was the largest polished diamond known at 530 carats. That was until 1985 and the discovery of the “Golden Jubilee Diamond” from the same mine as the “Cullinan Diamond” which is a 546 carat stone.
If you have limited display or storage space, and you are the impatient type; wanting to complete a collection in one single effort, you can always turn your eye to the Faberge replicas of the Imperial Russian Regalia. At one-tenth the scale of the actual royal jewels the Great and the Small Crowns still remarkably contain over 1,300 diamonds each and the Scepter contains approximately 125 diamonds.
Finally, if a replica of royal regalia is not adequate there is always the amazing “Diamond Crown of Peter the Great” with gold, silver, diamonds, emeralds, rubies, tourmaline, sable, and enamel, and completed with about 800 diamonds.
A “dream” collection of diamonds is quite easy to acquire if your budget cannot allow for a real collection, and if you know where to go looking. There are many museums of art, science and history that offer displays of world-class diamond collections and beautifully made diamond jewelry and art pieces. But, if you want to really try your hand at diamond collecting there is a rare park in Arkansas, Crater of Diamonds State Park, where all visitors are encouraged to dig and search for diamonds, and if you find any they are yours to keep. The Park is known for white, yellow and brown diamonds, and over 600 stones are found by visitors each year.
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