Origin of name The “Hooker Emerald Brooch” gets its name from the one time owner of the famous piece of jewelry Janet Annenberg Hooker, the renowned philanthropist and principal benefactor of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, who donated the 75-carat, half-million-dollar emerald brooch set with diamonds, to the Smithsonian Institution, in 1977. The […]
Author Archives: Dr Shihaan Larif
Origin of name The Guinness Emerald Crystal discovered in the Coscuez emerald mines is one of the largest gem-quality emerald crystals in the world, and is the largest emerald crystal in the collection of emeralds belonging to the Banco Nacionale de la Republica in Bogotá, the capital city of Colombia. The origin of the name […]
Origin of name The Grand Duchess Vladimir Tiara which belongs to the personal jewelry collection of H.M. Queen Elizabeth II, and was inherited from her grandmother Queen Mary, after her death in 1953, gets its name from Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia, wife of the Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich, the third son of Czar […]
Origin of name The exquisitely crafted emerald and diamond encrusted Godman Necklace, which is part of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s personal jewelry collection, was a gift by the two elderly Godman sisters to her majesty the Queen. The name “Godman Necklace” reflects the name of the original owners of the necklace. The two sisters […]
Origin of name The 858-carat “Gachala Emerald” described as one of the most beautiful emerald gemstones ever known, gets its name from the mining district where the “Vegas de San Juan” mine that produced the renowned gemstone was situated. Though lighter in color the Gachala emeralds were cleaner with less inclusions and more transparent than […]
Origin of name The term unguentarium is derived from the Latin word “unguent” which means a soft greasy or thick substance used as ointment or for lubrication. An unguentarium is a small vessel or container that holds an unguent. Unguentaria of different sizes and shapes made of ceramic or glass had been in use since […]
The Programa Royal Collections The Programa Royal Collections based in Madrid, Spain, contains one of the most comprehensive and unique collections of gems and minerals ever assembled, that includes all varieties and classes, besides other collections such as precious metal and gemstone artwork and sculptures both current as well as ancient, a collection of gem-encrusted […]
Jewelry of the Maharajahs were symbols of status and power The Maharajah Jamsahib of Nawanagar, Shri Kumar Ranjithsinhji Vibhaji Jadega (1872-1933) was a connoisseur and collector of gems and jewelry and had a fabulous collection of jewelry, some inherited from his ancestors and others designed and executed during his life time by Jacques Cartier, with […]
Emerald Carving an Ancient Art of the Indians of Central and South America (Mesoamerica) The “Emerald Man” is an artifact in the form of a small stone figurine, representing a male human figure, carved out of a single green emerald crystal, believed to be the oldest known Mesoamerican (middle American) emerald and the only known […]
Origin of name The Mughal emerald is a magnificent historic carved emerald, belonging to the period of the last of the four great Mughal Emperors of India, Aurangzeb who reigned between 1658 and 1707. The table-cut emerald, with two rectangular flat faces, with dimensions of 5.2 cm by 4.0 cm, and a thickness of 1.2 […]