GEMOLOGY
Kohinoor: Why crown jewel is trending
in India after Queen Elizabeth II’s death
Shweta Sharma Fri, September 9, 2022
Twitter users in India on Thursday set off the hashtag trend of the Kohinoor hours after the Buckingham Palace announced the history-defining moment of the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
Hundreds of Twitter users in India began raising the demand for return of the Kohinoor diamond — one of the world’s largest and most controversial — to the country.
The rare historical diamond is set in the crown of the British monarch which is on display in the Tower of London.
The return of the legendary gem stone appeared to remain the popular mood in the country as the hashtag Kohinoor continued to trend on Friday morning with more than 21,000 mentions on the microblogging site.
Kohinoor, also spelled as Koh-i-Noor, is a 105-carat gemstone which means “mountain of light” in Persian.
The diamond has been at the centre of political and legal controversy in India and dispute of ownership with claims just not from India but Pakistan as well.
It maintains a huge emotional connect with many Indians who believe that the diamond found in India in 14th century was “stolen” during the colonial regime.
The diamond was indeed passed through the hands of Rajput rulers, Mughal princes, Iranian warriors, Afghan rulers and Punjabi Maharajas before it ended in the crown of the British queen and found the longest home.
According to the UK Royal Palace, the Kohinoor was unearthed from Golconda mines in central southern India before it was handed to British monarchs in 1849.
It became the part of crown jewels of Queen Victoria along with hundreds of other gemstones that are said to have incalculable cultural, historical, and symbolic value and remain part of the royal collection.
The crown, which also features a purple velvet cap and ermine trim, was made in 1937 for Queen Elizabeth, consort of King George VI, to be worn on her husband’s coronation on 12 May 1937.
It is laden with 2,800 diamonds set into its platinum frame. The band comprises alternating clusters of diamonds forming crosses and rectangles, bordered by single rows of brilliant-cut diamonds.
Many believe the folklore that the Kohinoor carries a curse with its 750-year bloodstained history of murder, megalomania and treachery.
On Thursday, just as Buckingham Palace announced the tragic death of the queen, several people called on the royal family to use Britain’s longest serving monarch’s death as an opportunity to return the jewels.
“Journey of Kohinoor : From India to England. It should come back to its origin, the least UK can do towards the centuries of exploitation, opression, racism, slavery inflicted on people of the Indian subcontinent,” Twitter user Anushree said.
“Queen Elizabeth has died today... Can we get our #Kohinoor Diamond back, which was stolen by Britisher from #India. They created wealth on others death, famine, torchers & looting..” Vivek Singh, another user said.
Several people also demanded that prime minister Narendra Modi and president Droupadi Murmu get the Kohinoor back to India as the two leaders led the tribute to the Queen.
Mr Modi said: “Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will be remembered as a stalwart of our times. She provided inspiring leadership to her nation and people. She personified dignity and decency in public life. Pained by her demise. My thoughts are with her family and people of UK in this sad hour.”
In 2016, the diamond was at the centre of a court battle after an NGO filed a petition asking the court to direct the Indian government to bring back the diamond.
At that time the solicitor-general, representing India’s government, said the diamond was a “gift” to the East India company by the former rulers of Punjab in 184 and it was “neither stolen nor forcibly taken”.
However, the government took a U-turn later and the Indian ministry of culture “reiterated its resolve to make all possible efforts to bring back the Kohinoor Diamond in an amicable manner”.
For now, the famous Kohinoor-studded crown will be adorned by Prince Charles’ wife Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, who will become Queen Consort when her husband is King.
After Queen Elizabeth II's Death, Many Indians Are Demanding the Return of the Kohinoor Diamond
Chad de Guzman
Fri, September 9, 2022
INDIA-SHOW-DIAMOND
An Indian model shows a replica of the famous Indian diamond Kohinoor during a press meeting in Calcutta, 29 January 2002.
Shortly after British monarch Queen Elizabeth II passed away on Sept. 8, the word “Kohinoor” began trending on Indian Twitter.
It was a reference to one of the world’s most famous gems. The Kohinoor diamond is just one of 2,800 stones set in the crown made for Elizabeth’s mother, known as the Queen Mother—but the 105-carat oval-shaped brilliant is the proverbial jewel in the crown.
In India, it is notorious for the way in which it was acquired by the British.
The history of the Kohinoor
When it was mined in what is now modern-day Andhra Pradesh, during the Kakatiyan dynasty of the 12th-14th centuries, it was believed to have been 793 carats uncut. The earliest record of its possession puts it in the hands of Moguls in the 16th century. Then the Persians seized it, and then the Afghans.
The Sikh Maharajah, Ranjit Singh, brought it back to India after taking it from Afghan leader Shah Shujah Durrani. It was then acquired by the British during the annexation of Punjab. The East India Company got hold of the stone in the late 1840s, after forcing the 10-year-old Maharajah Dunjeep Singh to surrender his lands and possessions.
The company then presented the gem to Queen Victoria. Prince Albert, her consort, asked for it to be recut and it was set in the crowns of Queen Alexandra and Queen Mary before being placed in the Queen Mother’s crown in 1937.
The Queen Mother wore part of the crown at her daughter’s coronation in 1953. The Kohinoor has been among the British crown jewels since then, but governments in Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India have all laid claim to the diamond.
The crown of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, containing the famous Kohinoor diamond, pictured on April 19, 1994.Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images
Britain’s controversial possession of the Kohinoor diamond
While no plans for the future of the gem have been disclosed, the prospect of it remaining in the U.K. has prompted many Twitter users in India to demand its return.
“If the King is not going to wear Kohinoor, give it back,” wrote one.
Another said the diamond “was stolen” by the British, who “created wealth” from “death,” “famine” and “looting.”
It is not the first time that the diamond’s return has been sought. Upon India’s independence in 1947, the government asked for the diamond back. India made another demand in the year of Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation. These demands fell on deaf ears, with the U.K. arguing that there are no legal grounds for the Kohinoor’s restitution to India.
British-Indian author and political commentator Saurav Dutt says the chances of the U.K. returning the jewel are slim.
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True, the British recently facilitated the return of the Benin Bronzes—72 artifacts looted by British soldiers in the 19th century—to the Nigerian government. But Dutt says the British royal establishment is still “married to this romantic version of empire, even though it is long dead, and has lost its power.” The Kohinoor is a symbol of that power, Dutt argues, and in turning it over, he believes the Royals “would essentially be eviscerating themselves.”
At the very least, King Charles III must acknowledge the “black history” of the Kohinoor diamond, Dutt says.
“A recognition of the fact that it was obtained through stealth and deception would be a significant step at this stage, that lays the groundwork for the next generation to be able to give it back,” he tells TIME.
Many Indians may not have that patience. In the wake of the Queen’s death, there is only one demand on Indian Twitter: “Now can we get our #Kohinoor back?”
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