Royal Jewels of India

India has a rich heritage and culture which captivates travellers from across the globe. Our mythology and history depict a common interest which is India’s love for gold jewellery.

The love for jewellery in India is due to the fact that India had a steady supply of precious stones. Many types of gems were found in India and have been traded by traders from various parts of the world. Golconda mines were the main suppliers of diamond for the world until diamonds were discovered in Brazil 1725. Many famous diamonds like the Nur-Ul-Ain were found in Golconda mines.

Jewellers like Arpels, Cartier, Van Cleef and Chaumet started to work for India’s Emperors and Maharajahs since gemstones were abundant. This time created jewellery mixing Indian colours, motifs, and forms with European elegance and techniques. These jewels then became royal heirlooms and were handed down through generations. Some of these jewelleries were lost, stolen, and auctioned off.

Luckily some of these pieces have survived to let us know the craftsmanship and inspiration behind these jewelleries. The skill of the lapidaries and the inspirations for these jewelleries are women into India’s extraordinary history.

Here are a few of the extravagant jewellery used by tsars, maharajahs, kings and queens.

The Baroda Pearls

This necklace of pearls was in the collection of Khande Rao Gawkar who was the Maharajah of Baroda. This necklace was composed of seven strands of perfectly matched and graduated natural pearls. The necklace was later inherited by the flamboyant second wife of Maharaja, Sita Devi.

The Baroda Pearl necklace was eventually auctioned off in 2007 by Christie’s in a two strand guise. The auctioned necklace had two strands with the largest and perfect pearls which are matched in lustre, colour, size, and shape. The original Baroda Pearl necklace is with the Indian government but one strand was missing and this two stranded necklace was recreated using that lost strand.

The Patiala necklace

This is an Art Deco necklace which was made by Cartier under orders from the Maharajah of Patiala, Bhupinder Singh, in 1926. It is believed he went to Cartier with a truck full of exquisite jewels so that it can be made into a ceremonial necklace. This necklace is made of platinum and studded with 2,000 diamonds including a central yellow 926.25 carat diamond.

The necklace was stolen once but was restored with substitute stones to its former glory by Cartier. It is now in the vaults of Cartier.

Star of the South

Another piece in the collection of the Maharajah of Baroda, Khande Rao Gawkar is the necklace named Star of the South. There is a 129 carat Brazilian diamond in that necklace along with an English Dresden of 78.53 carats.  The Dresden and the Star of the South both set in a triple-tired diamond necklace. The second wife of the Maharaja, Sita Devi inherited the necklace after the king died.

Emerald necklace of the Maharajah of Nawanagar

The Maharajah of Nawanagar made an emerald and diamond studded necklace with the help of Cartier. This necklace has 20 large Colombian emeralds along with small round diamonds. The emeralds are emerald-cut and the diamonds are brilliant-cut. The emeralds in the necklace alone add up to over 300 carats.