The Curse Of The Hope Diamond

The Curse Behind The Hope Diamond

Diamonds have been a source of wealth and dispute for centuries. “When humankind first discovered the diamond is not known.” ("ECP" 685) Diamonds were originally mined from riverbeds in India, and through trade-routes, diamonds reached the kingdoms and empires of Europe and Asia. One diamond in particular has a most colorful history and has travelled across continents into the hands of Sultans, King Louis XIV, and finally to the Smithsonian in America where it is now on display for the public eye. This diamond has been known as the Hope Diamond, the French Blue, and Tavernier Blue throughout time. Today the Hope Diamond is well known for its curse that has touched every hand possessing the diamond.

This particular diamond is a rare brilliant blue. The Indians associated the color “blue with the Hindu god of death, Yama” (Kurin 55). The belief that blue diamonds should be avoided may have been why it was so easy for such a large blue diamond to travel west out of the hands of the Indians. The Hope Diamond was named after Lord Francis Hope but was first discovered by Jean-Baptiste Tavernier. Tavernier was an explorer who ventured from France to India in search of diamonds. It is believed that Tavernier robbed a large blue diamond off a Hindu idol (statue) of Sita. After years of misfortune, living a rough traveler’s life, Tavernier returned to France and by the request of King Louis XIV, Tavernier told his tales and sold many diamonds to the king, including the stone that would become the Hope Diamond. King Louis XIV had his diamond cutters refine the blue stone into a smaller more beautiful diamond. It is told that those who come into possession of this Diamond would be cursed till death. Many of the owners in history have suffered misfortunes which have contributed to the tale of the curse of the Hope Diamond.

Tavernier was born right after King Henry IV issued the Edict of Nantes, where Protestants gained civil rights. This allowed Tavernier to become an apprentice to a jeweler and begin his journey in search of diamonds. Though the myth speaks of a curse that is bestowed upon he who possesses the stone, there are no records of Tavernier suffering any ill fates while he carried the Hope Diamond for fifteen years. Additionally, there is no record of how Tavernier passed away. Skeptics believe that after Tavernier sold the diamond to the King of France, he was torn apart by wild dogs on a trip to Russia. Could this horrible death be the first attributed to the curse of the Hope Diamond? Another count states that after being handsomely paid for the diamond Tavernier purchased a large piece of land in the vicinity of Switzerland where he lived with his son. Apparently his wife died giving birth to his son and his son caused him much trouble forcing Tavernier to sell his estate to pay off his debts. This forced Tavernier to go on another adventure east looking for more diamonds. On this journey he picked up a fever and perished never being heard from again (Streeter 213). But if the curse from the Hope Diamond applies to the owner of the diamond, then why would Tavernier have died after he sold the diamond when he no longer owned it?

The following two owners of the Hope Diamond were not tormented by the curse. Both King Louis XIV and XV wore the diamond countless times but neither suffered ill fates. It was not until Louis XVI was crowned, that the curse seemed to reappear. Both King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were put to death by guillotine in the French Revolution. Those who believe in the Hope Diamond’s curse believe that their death was because of the diamond. It is difficult to attest to their deaths being caused by the diamond’s curse when a more logical solution would be that their wealth and affluence had much more to do with it. Also many other nobles, who never touched the stone, were beheaded during this time. After their death many of France’s royal treasures were stolen including the blue diamond. It could be believed that the diamond, in general, cursed France causing the revolution, the beheading of their King and Queen, and the loss of their treasures, but no historians have ever stated this before.

The next famous owner of the rare blue diamond was a British gem collector by the name Henry Phillip Hope. The curse once again subsided as the gem went through various Hope generations and eventually fell into the hands of Lord Francis Hope who married into the Hope family three generations later. Lord Francis Hope blamed his bankruptcy and diminishing wealth on the inheritance of the Hope Diamond (Kurin 13-14). Historians on the other hand would attest that he “lived beyond his means” (Wiki) and gambled frequently, blowing away the family wealth leaving him with only the inherited gems. Lord Francis Hope was not allowed to sell the Hope Diamond without permission from the court. While he was trying to sell the cursed diamond and obtain money from it, his wife abandoned him for an American. She left him divorced and poor. After finally receiving permission from the court, the diamond left London and the Turkish Sultan became the new owner. There are no accounts of curses or the likes occurring while the Sultan was in possession of the Hope Diamond.

The original blue diamond which the Hope Diamond was part of was believed to have been cut and reshaped three times over history by the time the Hope family last had it. It is believed that the Hope Diamond is part of a set of three blue diamonds, but the other siblings of the diamond have yet to be identified. “It was cut down to less than twice its original size over the course of its existence to meet the demands of taste, to hide its identity, and to increase its value” (O.T.I.S.). But is their possibility that in the process of reducing its size, other diamonds were created? If in fact there were other diamonds that came from the original stone stolen from the idol statue of Sita then it is likely the curse would have followed them to. So, why haven’t we heard of any other tales of unfortunate deaths based on cursed blue diamonds?

The last ill fated owners of the Hope Diamond were Evalyn Walsh McLean and James Todd. Evalyn was a rich, spoiled, alcoholic married to Ned McLean. Ned was the son of the affluent owners of the Washington Post and Evalyn was the daughter of a gold miner who struck it rich. They purchased the Hope Diamond off of Cartier, a gem dealer in Europe who began broadening his sales to America. Years later, Evalyn’s husband Ned fell ill and entered a mental institution where he would die. “Her oldest son lost his life in a car