- Bad luck can befall anyone,
however, sometimes it's more than that.
Throughout history, objects of ill fortune have passed on
through the generations.
But while most people would simply rid themselves of
such an object that's caused immense pain and suffering,
sometimes it's not so easy, as the object in question is,
in fact, an extremely valuable jewel.
Here are 10 cursed jewels that could kill you.
Number 10 is the Star of India.
The largest known gem-quality blue star sapphire
in the world is known as the Star of India.
It's named this after the pattern that's visible on it.
The only thing known about its origin is that it was mined
under mysterious circumstances in Sri Lanka some 300 years
before it appeared in a gem collection at the Paris
Exposition in 1900.
But wherever it came from before that,
a curse tagged along for the ride.
The golf ball size sapphire has been known to cause
incredible bad luck to anyone who acquires it,
and it almost seems to enjoy changing hands for that
very reason.
Such was the case on October 29th, 1964,
when three men broke into a museum where the stone
was on display and simply walked off with it.
The oddest thing about this story is that of the jewels
taken, including the star, none were insured,
and the batteries in the security camera just happened
to be dead.
Shortly after the theft, they were arrested and the stones
were recovered and placed back in the museum,
almost as if waiting for someone else to steal them.
What's especially rare about this situation is that the
thieves actually escaped owning the jewel with their lives,
unlike many of those that acquired it before them.
Number nine is the Black Prince's Ruby.
Often referred to as the great imposter,
the Black Prince's Ruby is the large stone in the center
of England's Imperial State Crown.
A stone which is not a ruby at all, but a red spinal.
Given to the black prince, Edward of Woodstock,
in the 14th Century.
The ruby previously belonged to the Sultan of Grenada,
and was literally taken off of his body by his murderer,
the King of Castile.
However, shortly after receiving the stone,
Edward contracted a mysterious illness which took his life.
Since that time, numerous deaths have been associated
with the Black Prince's Ruby, including Richard the Third,
who apparently died at the Battle of Bosworth
while wearing it.
For the moment, it actually appears as if the curse is
taking a break, but which royal family member will be
its focus again when it starts is anyone's guess.
For this reason, the Imperial State Crown rarely makes
a public appearance for fear that it will take another life.
Number eight is the Blue Diamond.
The Blue Diamond is one of the most mysterious gems
on the planet.
The bizarre events surrounding this stone are most
definitely in the realm of curses.
In 1989, a caretaker working for the Saudi royal family
stole a number of small jewels, but when he was caught,
and the stones were returned, it was revealed that one was
missing, the Blue Diamond.
Almost immediately after the gem was stolen,
people involved in the case began disappearing,
or turning up dead.
Even the officer in charge of the investigation was
executed in 1995.
Number seven is The Regent.
Legend has it that in 1698, a slave working the Kollur Mine
in India decided to steal what would later be named
the Regent Diamond,
hiding the stone inside a leg wound that he'd sustained
in escaping with it.
He'd made a deal with an English sea captain,
but was betrayed when the Englishman drowned him
so that he could sell the diamond
and keep all the money for himself.
However, before dying, the slave cursed the Regent diamond,
and that curse has had an effect on all of those who
owned it ever since.
The stone has been stolen multiple times,
and whenever it was recovered, it seemed to bring with it
even worse luck.
In 1812, Napoleon Bonaparte had the diamond placed in the
pommel of his sword, only to be defeated and see the sword
be given to his enemies.
Number six is the Shah Diamond.
The Shah Diamond is not the most beautiful gem,
nor is it anywhere near the most valuable,
but what it lacks in looks and value,
it more than makes up for in its bloody history
and the darkness that it bestows on those who own it.
The diamond was originally taken by the great mogul,
Akbar, the ruler of Northern India, in 1591 from
a conquered region.
He, and one of his descendants, had inscriptions put
into the jewel,
but in 1738, the Shah Diamond was seized by a Persian ruler,
staying in his family line until 1829.
That's when Alexander De-boy-a-dock, a Russian diplomat
and writer, was murdered on Persian soil.
To appease the Russian's call for severe punishment,
the diamond was given to Nicholas the First, the Czar.
Like clockwork, every single time that the Shah diamond
changes hands, it changes hands in a bloody way.
Number five is the Sancy Diamond.
A favorite among European royalty, the Sancy Diamond
comes with a curse that not only brings misfortune,
but somehow enhances the greed of whoever holds it.
The diamond originated somewhere in India,
but its first known owner was Charles the Bold,
the Duke of Burgundy.
After trading hands to other royal men,
including Manuel the First of Portugal,
the Sancy Diamond seemed to begin handing out
the worst luck.
A thief stole it from Portugal, but it wound up being
found in the stomach of a murdered royal messenger.
He swallowed it to stop it from being discovered by
his attackers, who appeared to somehow be drawn to it
without knowing why.
The Sancy Diamond can actually be found today on display
at the Apollo Gallery at the Louvre,
but if you're visiting, perhaps don't get too close.
Number four is the Delhi Purple Sapphire.
In 1857, mutiny seized the country of India,
and the Delhi Purple Sapphire was stolen from the
temple of Indura.
The sapphire was brought by Colonel W Farris to England,
where suddenly his family began experiencing health
and financial troubles and even a friend committed suicide
while holding onto the gem.
In 1890, the sapphire was purchased by Edward Heron-Allen,
who after a series of his own misfortunes,
hurled the jewel into a canal, only to have it
miraculously returned to him.
Then in 1943, the Delhi Purple Sapphire was willed
to the Natural History Museum, and stayed there until 2004
when John Whittaker was asked to bring it to an event.
Whittaker tried to travel with it three separate times,
but was engulfed in a horrible thunderstorm,
fell ill with a stomach bug,
and then passed a kidney stone.
Terrifyingly, those last two events almost took his life.
Number three is the Black Orlov.
While the origins of the Eye of Brahma,
better known as the Black Orlov diamond, are debated,
what's clear is that it's a dangerous jewel to own.
There's a legend about the Black Orlov that says that it
was stolen from a statue of the Hindu god, Brahma,
in which the diamond was one of its eyes.
The theft brought upon it a curse
that has cost countless lives.
One of its first owners, J W Paris, a diamond dealer,
leapt off a skyscraper in New York City in 1932.
The next two owners were both Russian princesses,
one of which was Nadia Orlov,
for whom the diamond was named.
Both of these women individually jumped off of buildings
to their deaths in the 1940's.
That led its next owner, Charles F Winston to cut the
jewel into three pieces in an attempt to break
the horrible curse.
Number two is the Koh-I-noor Diamond.
As one of the largest cut diamonds on the planet,
the Koh-I-noor Diamond's incredible value should draw
any person to want it.
However, by owning it, that person would apparently
soon fall under a curse.
Believed to have been taken from the Golconda Mine in India,
the Kohr-I-noor, which means mountain of light in Persian,
remained with many Indian dynasties until it fell into
the hands of Babur, the first Emperor of the Moghul Empire
and then Shah Jahan, the Emperor behind the construction
of the Taj Mahal.
Soon after Jahan had the diamond placed
in his peacock throne,
his own sons staged a coup,
and had the elder man imprisoned.
Numerous rulers got their hands on the Kohr-I-noor
after that.
Many of them meeting untimely deaths until it was finally
given to Queen Victoria of Britain in 1849,
and hasn't killed a man since.
And number one is the Hope Diamond.
Widely considered to be the world's most famous
cursed jewel,
the Hope Diamond is said to have originally been stolen
from a Hindu idol and then sold to a French trader.
As the gem made its way from hand to hand
among French royalty,
a pattern began to emerge amongst those who owned it.
Marie Antoinette and King Louie the 16th were beheaded.
Princess de Lamballe was killed by a mob,
who beat her mercilessly,
and Jacques Colet committed suicide.
The diamond's curse has been responsible for literally
dozens of deaths, madness, and loss of wealth.
Today it's on display inside the Washington National Museum
of Natural History, where it hopefully will not be able
to continue its murder spree.
And that's it.
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