“She Wanted to Make Sure” — Who Owns the Florentine Diamond? It Remained Hidden for Over 100 Years

For thousands of years, humanity has killed itself over things that made us go "ooh, shiny." Ancient Egyptians utilized rare minerals, stones, and gold for a variety of purposes. Religious artifacts, jewelry, and symbols of wealth and power.

Today, many of these same minerals are implemented, like gold, in the creation of technology such as circuit boards, microchips, and other components that make the marvels of modern living a reality.

But sometimes, folks just like rare stones because they're just that: rare. And the Florentine Diamond is one such jewel that has captivated purveyors of extraordinary gems for hundreds of years.

Currently, it's in the possession of the Habsburg-Lorraine family, which can trace its ownership of the rare stone all the way back to the 1600s. Internet Stones writes that Ludovico Castro, who was the Portuguese Governor of Goa and the Count of Montesanto at the time, obtained the diamond during a conquest of Southern India.

The story goes that Castro defeated the King of Vijayanagar, and part of the spoils of his victory was a beautiful light yellow diamond. According to Internet Stones, the Florentine diamond is a whopping 137.27 carats, making it the fifth largest yellow diamond in the world.

Additionally, the gem database states that the Florentine is only one of two known yellow diamonds to be of Indian origin (the other is the Shah Diamond). Other yellow diamonds were primarily discovered in South Africa.

Castro's diamond had eventually made its way to Rome, and it was put in the care of Jesuits.

From there, Ferdinando I de Medici expressed interest in purchasing the stone and engaged in lengthy negotiations with the Castro-Noranha family to buy the Florentine Diamond. Eventually, the amount of 35,000 Portuguese scudi crocati was agreed upon.

Finding an exact comparable dollar value amount today is, as one Redditor in this discussion puts it, "a fruitless task." This is largely due to the buying power of scudi and the economic situation in Rome at the time. However, one commenter in the same discussion, along with Wordnik, states that, judging by present-day gold prices, a single scudo would be worth around $15.70.

Which would mean that the Medici family dropped just under $550,000 for the Florentine diamond. (ArtNet writes its current value is between $700k-$750k.) However, there are other accounts as to how the stone made its way to Rome. Some stated that it was worn by Charles the Bold of Burgundy into battle, and after he fell in battle, it was found by a soldier who sold off the stone, not knowing its value.

All accounts point to the diamond getting into the hands of the Medici family. It was also in the hands of Marie Antoinette's parents, and to Charles I, who was the former emperor of Austria-Hungary of the Habsburg dynasty.

During World War II, family descendants revealed that Empress Zita had the stone transported out of Europe.

For over 100 years, it was believed that the diamond had gone missing. However, Empress Zita had ensured the stone wouldn't fall outside of family hands. Yahoo! writes that the stone was ultimately located in a Canadian bank vault.

Charles I's grandson, Karl von Habsburg-Lothringen, said in an interview with The New York Times that the family had intentionally kept its whereabouts unknown as a means of honoring the late Emperor's wife's wishes. He said of Empress Zita: "I think she wanted to make sure that it was not in her lifetime. I have the feeling she was very glad that some important objects of the family are something that she had saved."