Download or read book Koh i Noor written by William Dalrymple and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2017-09-12 with total page 307 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the internationally acclaimed and bestselling historians William Dalrymple and Anita Anand, the first comprehensive and authoritative history of the Koh-i-Noor diamond, arguably the most celebrated jewel in the world. On March 29, 1849, the ten-year-old leader of the Sikh kingdom of the Punjab was ushered into the magnificent Mirrored Hall at the center of the British fort in Lahore, India. There, in a formal Act of Submission, the frightened but dignified child handed over to the British East India Company swathes of the richest land in India and the single most valuable object in the subcontinent: the celebrated Koh-i-Noor diamond, otherwise known as the Mountain of Light. To celebrate the acquisition, the British East India Company commissioned a history of the diamond woven together from the gossip of the Delhi Bazaars. From that moment forward, the Koh-i-Noor became the most famous and mythological diamond in history, with thousands of people coming to see it at the 1851 Great Exhibition and still more thousands repeating the largely fictitious account of its passage through history. Using original eyewitness accounts and chronicles never before translated into English, Dalrymple and Anand trace the true history of the diamond and disperse the myths and fantastic tales that have long surrounded this awe-inspiring jewel. The resulting history of south and central Asia tells a true tale of greed, conquest, murder, torture, colonialism, and appropriation that shaped a continent and the Koh-i-Noor itself.
Download or read book Kohinoor written by William Dalrymple and published by Juggernaut Books. This book was released on 2016 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This riveting tale of the Kohinoor, the worldÕs most coveted gem, unearths fascinating new information as it moves from the Mughal court to Persia to Afghanistan; from Maharaja Ranjit Singh's durbar in Punjab to the Queen of England's Crown. A thrilling tale, full of violence, drama and intrigue.
Download or read book Queen Victoria s Matchmaking written by Deborah Cadbury and published by PublicAffairs. This book was released on 2017-11-14 with total page 439 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A captivating exploration of the role in which Queen Victoria exerted the most international power and influence: as a matchmaking grandmother. As her reign approached its sixth decade, Queen Victoria's grandchildren numbered over thirty, and to maintain and increase British royal power, she was determined to maneuver them into a series of dynastic marriages with the royal houses of Europe. Yet for all their apparent obedience, her grandchildren often had plans of their own, fueled by strong wills and romantic hearts. Victoria's matchmaking plans were further complicated by the tumultuous international upheavals of the time: revolution and war were in the air, and kings and queens, princes and princesses were vulnerable targets. Queen Victoria's Matchmaking travels through the glittering, decadent palaces of Europe from London to Saint Petersburg, weaving in scandals, political machinations and family tensions to enthralling effect. It is at once an intimate portrait of a royal family and an examination of the conflict caused by the marriages the Queen arranged. At the heart of it all is Victoria herself: doting grandmother one moment, determined Queen Empress the next.
Download or read book Chasing the Mountain of Light written by Kevin Rushby and published by St. Martin's Griffin. This book was released on 2015-09-22 with total page 273 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Koh-i-Noor diamond known as the Mountain of Light, the world's largest diamond, was found in India, traveled from Golconda to the Mughal palaces in the north. Fought over, cursed at and occasionally lost, it finally reached the Sikhs in the Punjab, only to be seized by British agents eager to please young Queen Victoria. It now lies in the Tower of London where some say its curse controls the fate of the Windsor family. In Chasing the Mountain of Light, Kevin Rushby pursues the dramatic career of the Koh-i-Noor on a journey to the heart of Indian culture meeting dealers, smugglers, and petty crooks along the way. It's another adventure from Rushby whom the Washington Post recently compared to William S. Burroughs and Arthur Rimbaud.
Download or read book The Koh i noor Diamond written by Iradj Amini and published by Roli Books Private Limited. This book was released on 2013-06-01 with total page 212 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A courtesan had told Nadir Shah that the priceless diamond hidden in Mohammed Shah's turban. Citing an ancient tradition, the victor demanded an exchange of headgear. At last the diamond was his. Or was it? Hastily he undud the folds... Wonderstruck at the gem's size, brilliance and beauty, he exclaimed, 'Koh-i-noor'! 1739: the gem now had a name. One fabulous diamond whose value could feed the entire world for two-and-a-half days. Four race: Indian, Afghan, Persian and English, whose destinies were inextrcably involved with this gem. A Persian oilman's son who went on to virtually rule Golconda and its vast diamond mines. A Mughal prince, hated by history, who was sinned against as much as sinning. Only an Indian or Persian couild tell this great story with all its nuances.
Download or read book The Mountain of Light written by Indu Sundaresan and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2013-10-08 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the internationally bestselling author of The Twentieth Wife, a novel based on the tumultuous history of a legendary 186-carat diamond—originating in India—and the men and women who possessed it. As empires rose and fell and mighty kings jostled for power, its glittering radiance never dimmed. It is the “Mountain of Light”—the Kohinoor diamond—and its facets reflect a sweeping story of love, adventure, conquest, and betrayal. Its origins are the stuff of myth, but for centuries this spectacular gem changes hands from one ruler to another in India, Persia, and Afghanistan. In 1850, the ancient stone is sent halfway around the world where it will play a pivotal role in the intertwined destinies of a boy-king of India and a young queen of England—a queen who claims the Mountain of Light and India itself for her own burgeoning empire, the most brilliant jewels in her imperial crown. The Mountain of Light is a magnificent story of loss and recovery, sweeping change and enduring truth, wrapped around the glowing heart of one of the world’s most famous diamonds.
Download or read book Empire of Diamonds written by Adrienne Munich and published by University of Virginia Press. This book was released on 2020-05-19 with total page 402 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 1850, the legendary Koh-i-noor diamond, gem of Eastern potentates, was transferred from the Punjab in India and, in an elaborate ceremony, placed into Queen Victoria’s outstretched hands. This act inaugurated what author Adrienne Munich recognizes in her engaging new book as the empire of diamonds. Diamonds were a symbol of political power—only for the very rich and influential. But, in a development that also reflected the British Empire’s prosperity, the idea of owning a diamond came to be marketed to the middle class. In all kinds of writings, diamonds began to take on an affordable romance. Considering many of the era’s most iconic voices—from Dickens and Tennyson to Kipling and Stevenson—as well as grand entertainments such as The Moonstone, King Solomon’s Mines, and the tales of Sherlock Holmes, Munich explores diamonds as fetishes that seem to contain a living spirit exerting powerful effects, and shows how they scintillated the literary and cultural imagination. Based on close textual attention and rare archival material, and drawing on ideas from material culture, fashion theory, economic criticism, and fetishism, Empire of Diamonds interprets the various meanings of diamonds, revealing a trajectory including Indian celebrity-named diamonds reserved for Asian princes, such as the Great Mogul and the Hope Diamond, their adoption by British royal and aristocratic families, and their discovery in South Africa, the mining of which devastated the area even as it opened the gem up to the middle classes. The story Munich tells eventually finds its way to America, as power and influence cross the Atlantic, bringing diamonds to a wide consumer culture.
Download or read book Dictionary of Gems and Gemology written by Mohsen Manutchehr-Danai and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-03-09 with total page 575 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The rapid growth of gemological sciences and mineralogy demands a dictionary such as this for gemologists, mineralogists, geologists, jewel dealers, industry and hobbyists. With some 16,000 comprehensive definitions, supplemented by more than 250 diagrams and figures, this is a one-stop reference to any matter dealing with gems and gemology.
Download or read book The Perplexing Theft of the Jewel in the Crown written by Vaseem Khan and published by Redhook. This book was released on 2016-08-09 with total page 285 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the second instalment of a charming mystery series, a Mumbai-based investigator and his elephant partner are on the hunt for the Queen of England's stolen Crown Jewels. For centuries, the Koh-i-Noor diamond has set man against man and king against king. Now part of the British Crown Jewels, the priceless gem is a prize that many have killed to possess. So when the Crown Jewels go on display in Mumbai, security is everyone's principal concern. And yet, on the very day Inspector Chopra visits the exhibition, the diamond is stolen from under his nose. The heist was daring and seemingly impossible. The hunt is on for the culprits. But it soon becomes clear that only one man -- and his elephant -- can possibly crack this case. . . Featuring the most charming crime-solving duo ever to grace the pages of a book, the Baby Ganesh Detective Agency series is a must-read for fans of Alexander McCall Smith.
Download or read book The Mysterious Mr Jacob written by John Zubrzycki and published by Transit Lounge . This book was released on 2017-04-01 with total page 262 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It was a scandal that rocked the highest echelons of the British Raj. In 1891, a notorious jeweller and curio dealer from Simla offered to sell the world's largest brilliant-cut diamond to the fabulously wealthy Nizam of Hyderabad. If the audacious deal succeeded it would set the merchant up for life. But the transaction went horribly wrong. The Nizam accused him of fraud, triggering a sensational trial in the Calcutta High Court that made headlines around the world...
Download or read book Symphony for the City of the Dead written by M.T. Anderson and published by Candlewick Press. This book was released on 2017-02-07 with total page 465 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Originally published: Somerville, Massachusetts: Candlewick Press, 2015.
Download or read book Famous Diamonds written by Ian Balfour and published by ACC Distribution. This book was released on 1997 with total page 328 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The history of great diamonds is intimately interwoven with the lives of emperors and conquerors, great kings and queens, with statesmen and soldiers, the rich and famous - but also, inevitably, with those who lead more shadowy lives. Diamonds have been objects of passion, sometimes of war, violence and theft." "As well as being objects of exceptional beauty and rarity, they were once thought to possess magical properties that protected their owners from enemies. Initially a male prerogative reflecting status and authority, these incredible gems later adorned the wives of powerful men, and at times were offered as influential gifts. Few were immune to the temptation of diamonds; many sacrificed their lives and souls to them." "In Famous Diamonds, Ian Balfour tells the fascinating stories of almost 80 of these remarkable gems including the famous: Koh-i-Noor, which is set in the British Crown Jewels; the infamous: the deep blue Hope Diamond, which is said to bring bad luck to all who handle it; the biggest: The Cullinan; and the Hollywood romantic: the Taylor-Burton Diamond. Some have detailed histories that can be traced from the present day back to the moment they were mined, while others have a more mysterious past or have disappeared from view. Also included are shorter entries on a further selection of some forty notable diamonds."--BOOK JACKET.
Download or read book Acres of Diamonds written by Russell H. Conwell and published by . This book was released on 1915 with total page 212 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Russell H. Conwell Founder Of Temple University Philadelphia.
Download or read book White Mughals written by William Dalrymple and published by Penguin UK. This book was released on 2004-01-22 with total page 884 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: James Achilles Kirkpatrick landed on the shores of eighteenth-century India as an ambitious soldier of the East India Company. Although eager to make his name in the subjection of a nation, it was he who was conquered—not by an army but by a Muslim Indian princess. Kirkpatrick was the British Resident at the court of the Nizam of Hyderabad when in 1798 he glimpsed Khair un-Nissa—'Most Excellent among Women'—the great-niece of the Nizam's Prime Minister. He fell in love with Khair, and overcame many obstacles to marry her—not least of which was the fact that she was locked away in purdah and engaged to a local nobleman. Eventually, while remaining Resident, Kirkpatrick converted to Islam, and according to Indian sources even became a double-agent working for the Hyderabadis against the East India Company. Possessing all the sweep of a great nineteenth-century novel, White Mughals is a remarkable tale of harem politics, secret assignations, court intrigue, religious disputes and espionage.
Download or read book Traditional Indian Jewellery written by Bernadette Van Gelder and published by Antique Collector's Club. This book was released on 2018-01-31 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since time immemorial, India has lured those in quest of spices, gold and precious gems. Spanning 5,000 years of this glorious legacy, 'Indian Jewellery: the Golden Smile of India', takes an ethnographic approach to the subject, weaving factual information and sumptuous images with the fascinating stories of ancient travellers to India.
Download or read book The Curse of Mohenjodaro written by Maha Khan Phillips and published by Pan Macmillan. This book was released on 2017-01-12 with total page 369 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: ‘An unputdownable story of ancient artefacts, modern cults, inexplicable deaths and a woman trying to navigate through all of these in search of her sister’ Kamila Shamsie 2016 AD. When footage of a team of archaeologists bursting into flames at the ancient site of Mohenjodaro goes viral, the world is horrified and shaken. While authorities suspect it to be an incendiary terrorist attack, Nadia Osbourne determines to find her archaeologist sister, Layla, convinced that she has survived. Her frantic search takes her to the ruins and forces her to confront her own demons – her inexplicable dreams about a woman named Jaya. 3800 BC. The city of Meluhha is on the brink of a revolution and Iaf and his coterie of corrupt priests will do anything to maintain the+B21ir power. Jaya is the only one who can read the Bloodstone, the heart of the Goddess Shakari, and divine the future. But with her daughter under Iaf’s control, will Jaya be able to prevent what is to come? Inspired by the legends surrounding the lost Indus Valley city, The Curse of Mohenjodaro is a gripping thriller about a powerful relic, a sinister cult, and family secrets that haunt generations.
Download or read book Tiffany Diamonds written by John Loring and published by . This book was released on 2005-11 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book will appeal to anyone who is intrigued by diamonds or is interested in Tiffany & Co. Annotation 2005 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com).
