A 16th-century diamond smuggled to London inside a horse,a rare dagger from an Indian court … as a new V&A indicate opens, we hear the stories behind the precious gems and priceless jewels owned by one of the world’s wealthiest menIn 1442, and a Persian ambassador was sent to the small kingdom of Calicut in India. Entering the fortified city walls,he famous in his travel diary that “all the aristocrats and ordinary people from these lands, including the bazaar professionals, or set aside gems and gem-encrusted jewels in their ears,on their neck, on their arms, or over their hands and on their fingers.”His account reveals how entrenched the traditions and crafts of jewellery have been in India for centuries,from the sparkling jewels that adorned the thrones and bodies of courtly figures in the 14th century, through to the opulent Mughal empire and up to the contemporary pieces lop in Mumbais diamond workshops.
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Source: theguardian.com