Monday Marvels: The Cursed Black Orlov

Jewelry can inspire a range of emotions in people, from bittersweet nostalgia to burgeoning love. There are rumors, however, that some jewelry can inspire more than just feelings…they can bring about death.

The Black Orlov, also knows the Eye of Brahma Diamond, is a black diamond weighing in at 67.5 carats. Discovered in India in the early 19^th Century, it was allegedly stolen from a statue of the Hindu god Brahma by a monk. This theft, apparently, was what brought on the dreadful curse in the first place.

Consider these facts:

• In 1932, a diamond dealer named J.W. Paris committed suicide after bringing the diamond to the United States.
• In the 1940s, two Russian princesses who once owned the diamond jumped to their deaths.

Finally, a man named Charles Winson cut the diamond down into three pieces in an attempt to break the curse. Since then, it appears the curse may have been broken.

Even still, would you want to own a piece of jewelry once purported to cause suicidal tendencies?

Jewelry Through the Ages: Georgian Period

Georgian jewelry encompasses any jewelry crafted between the years 1714 and 1837. This era in time is known as the “Georgian” era in particular because it spanned the reign of four British kings, all named George (George I, George II, George III, and George IV). This period was marked by a mixture of romanticism and Gothicism, embodied by authors like Jane Austen and Mary Shelley. The Industrial Revolution also began during this period.

Jewelry in the Georgian Era tended to reflect other artistic trends, borrowing from the gothic with images of skulls and coffins.

Characteristics of jewelry from this period include:

•  Made by hand and very rare
• Nature-inspired themes (birds, leaves, etc.)
• Precious stones
• Skull motifs, coffins

The ring pictured right (georgianjewelry.com) is an example of Georgian-style jewelry inspired by the term memento mori, meaning “remember that you must die”.

What is your jewelry style? Stop by Fountain City Jewelers to find out!

Monday Marvels: Wallis Simpson’s Panther Bracelet

This beauty was one of the most expensive pieces of jewelry ever sold at auction ($12.4 million, Sotheby’s). The new owner is rumored to be Madonna.

The onyx and diamond bracelet once adorned the wrist of the infamous Wallis Simpson, who received it as a gift from the former King Edward VIII while they were living in exile in Paris. Why were they exiled?

Well…Wallis Simpson was a notable socialite who was already divorced and still married to her second husband when she met the then Prince of Wales. Things really came to a head in 1936 when Edward became King. Wallis divorced her second husband later that year, but the King was not permitted to marry her due to Church law. Until 2002, one could not remarry in the Church of England if one’s former spouse was still alive. In order to be able to marry her, Edward abdicated the throne in December of 1936; they were married in June 1937. Needless to say, the two were not particularly popular in England after that, and they spent most of the time leading up to World War II exiled in France.