After the death of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, many of her fashion legacies will be inherited by the royal family's descendants, especially the valuable royal crowns. However, according to the British media "Daily Star" reported on September 14, among the many crowns, there is a crown studded with a "mountain of light" diamond that all male members of the royal family avoid, and it is even described as a "cursed crown".
According to Reader's Digest, according to Indian legend, the man who wears the "Mountain of Light" diamond "will have the world, but will also encounter all the misfortunes in the world", so for more than a hundred years, no male member of the British royal family dared to wear it.
The giant diamond, which reportedly dates back about 7 centuries, is said to have been discovered on the banks of the Gotha valley by the newborn prince Karna, the son of the sun god and a princess.
After that, Prince Karna wore the gem on his forehead until he was killed in battle. Later, the diamond disappeared until a woman found it and dedicated it to Shiva.
However, the first mention of the diamond in history dates back to the 14th century, when it was owned by Raja of Malwa, India. Later, with the invasion of the Delhi Sultanate, it fell into the hands of Mughal emperors between 1525 and 1739.
In 1628, Shah Jahan, the fifth emperor of the Mughal dynasty, set the diamond inlaid on his magnificent peacock throne. However, in 1658 he was imprisoned in the Agra Fort by his own son Aurangzeb. After Aulanzeb possessed the large gem, he ordered it to be cut and modified, and its weight was eventually reduced to 186 carats.
Until 1739, when the Iranian ruler Nader Shah invaded the Mughal dynasty under Muhammad Farouq, thousands of people were killed and all jewels, including the mouth-watering "Mountain of Light" giant diamond, were looted.
In 1747, as if cursed, Nader died at the hands of his own officers, and his empire collapsed. Later, the "Mountain of Light" giant diamond changed hands several times until the Kingdom of Punjab was annexed by the British in 1849, and it eventually fell into the hands of Queen Victoria.
Intriguingly, the contract at the time clearly stated, "This gem, known as the Mountain of Light, was taken from Suja Ur Mukhsha by Prince Ranjit Singh, and the Prince of Lahore should give it to the Queen of England." ”
But Queen Victoria is said to be not satisfied with the diamond's appearance, so it was recut and polished, reduced from 186 carats to the current 108 carats, and then set in a crown, now known as the "cursed" crown.
Although the legend says that the "Mountain of Light" diamond will bring bad luck to the man who wears it, the woman who wears it will not be cursed. So, in 1902, Queen Alexandra wore this crown for the first time, and it is also the only crown in the British royal family made entirely of platinum, with more than 2,000 diamonds on it.
According to the BBC, the last member of the royal family to wear it was Queen Elizabeth, the mother of the late Queen Elizabeth II, who wore it for the last time at the coronation of her daughter Queen Elizabeth II in 1953.
The crown was last seen in public in 2002, when it was placed on Queen Elizabeth's coffin.
Now with the death of Queen Elizabeth II, it is unclear who will inherit the crown. According to NBC, royal experts believe it could eventually be handed over to King Charles III or Queen Camilla.
But It is unlikely that King Charles III would have worn it himself, after all, no king had dared to wear it on his head since the Victorian era.
It is worth mentioning that the Indian government has asked the British to return this "Mountain of Light" giant diamond, so perhaps in the future it will "return to its original owner".
Image source: Daily Star, Bing