The Black Orlov Diamond
According to the legend, the Black Orlov is said to have
taken its name from the Russian Princess Nadia Vyegin-Orlov who owned it for
time during the mid-eighteenth century. It is a 67.50-carat cushion-cut stone, a
so-called black diamond (actually, a very dark gun-metal color). It is reported
to have belonged to a nineteenth-century shrine near Pondicherry, India, and to
have weighed 195 carats in the rough.
The stone has been exhibited widely, including at the
American Museum of Natural History in 1951, the Wonderful World of Fine Jewelry
& Gifts at the 1964 Texas State Fair, Dallas, and the Diamond Pavilion in
Johannesburg in 1967.
The Black Orlov was owned by Charles F. Winson, New York City
gem dealer, who valued it at $150,000. It is mounted in a modern
diamond-and-platinum necklace. An alternate name is the Eye of Brahma Diamond.
In 1969, the stone was sold for $300,000. It was resold in 1990 at Sothebys for
$99,000. Source: Diamonds - Famous, Notable and Unique by GIA, the
Gemstone Forecaster, and the Cartier archives.