Patiala Necklace

The Patiala Necklace was a necklace designed and made by Cartier in 1928.[1]

Maharaja Yadavindra Singh of Patiala wearing the famous ʽPatiala Necklaceʼ1930s

The necklace had five chains (ladi) and included a neck collar. It contained 2,930 diamonds, including as its centrepiece the world's seventh-largest diamond at the time, the "De Beers". That diamond had a 428 carat pre-cut weigh, and it weighed 234.65 carats in its final setting.[2] It is the largest cushion-cut yellow diamond and the 2nd largest yellow faceted diamond in the world. The necklace also contained seven other large diamonds ranging from 18 to 73 carats, and a number of Burmese rubies.[3]

History

In 1925, the necklace was commissioned by Bhupinder Singh of Patiala, who was the Maharaja of the princely state of Patiala.

Around 1948 it disappeared from the Royal Treasury of Patiala. It was last pictured in a 1946 photograph which depicted Yadavindra Singh wearing the necklace. [1]

In 1982, at the Sotheby's Patiala Royal Family auction in Geneva, the "De Beers" diamond reappeared.[4] There, the bidding went up to $3.16 million, but it is unclear whether it met its reserve price.[5]

In 1998, part of the necklace was found at a second-hand jewellery shop in London by Eric Nussbaum, a Cartier associate.[1] The remaining large jewels were missing, including the Burmese rubies and the 18 to 73 carat diamonds that were mounted on a pendant. Cartier purchased the incomplete necklace and, after four years, restored it to resemble the original. They replaced the lost diamonds with cubic zirconia and synthetic diamonds, and mounted a replica of the original "De Beers" diamond. They never planned to give it back to the family who it belonged to. [3][6][7]

The necklace is the subject of a documentary by Doc & Film International.[8]

A granddaughter of Bhupinder Singh of Patiala is now a jeweller [9] in California. In 2012, she was involved in an exhibit "Maharaja: The Splendor of India's Royal Courts" [10] at the Asian Art Museum, where the recreated necklace was displayed.

In 2022, Cartier loaned the recreated necklace to YouTuber Emma Chamberlain.[11] Chamberlain, who is a Cartier brand ambassador,[12] received criticism online for wearing the necklace to the Met Gala.[13]

References
  1. Miller, Nick (2023-01-03). "What Happened to the Patiala Necklace and Was it Ever Found?". Discovery UK. Retrieved 2023-05-10.
  2. "Bhupinder Singh's necklace". www.livemint.com. 30 November 2011. Retrieved 2018-03-04.
  3. http://www.beau-rivage.ch/maj/pdf/carnets_de_route/UK/BAT_CDR_19-ANGLAIS_-_DEF.pdf Archived 2013-12-04 at the Wayback Machine
  4. Yeates, Walter (May 17, 2022). "Mystery at Met Gala 2022: Did Emma Chamberlain Wear A Stolen Necklace?". International Gem Society. Retrieved May 10, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. "De Beers Diamond - The Second-Largest Faceted Yellow Diamond". israelidiamond.co.il. Retrieved 2018-03-04.
  6. "Patiala necklace, world's most expensive jewelry". Blueblood.co.in. Archived from the original on 2011-04-30. Retrieved 2011-08-27.
  7. "The missing necklace". The Hindu. 2004-02-16. Archived from the original on 2004-04-30. Retrieved 2011-08-27.
  8. "The Patiala Necklace". Retrieved 2018-09-21.
  9. Lineage leads Jyotsna Singh to jewelry design, Michelle Devera, October 16, 2011
  10. "MAHARAJA: The Splendor of India's Royal Courts". www.asianart.com. Retrieved 2023-05-10.
  11. "Emma Chamberlain wore Maharaja of Patiala's diamond choker to Met Gala 2022". The Times of India. 2022-05-10. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 2023-05-10.
  12. "Emma Chamberlain, Cartier's Newest Ambassador, Drips in Diamonds on the Met Gala Red Carpet". ELLE. 2022-05-02. Retrieved 2023-05-10.
  13. "Emma Chamberlain wore Maharaja of Patiala's choker to Met Gala, and netizens aren't pleased". The Indian Express. 2022-05-08. Retrieved 2023-05-10.
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