In popular literature, many superlatives have been used to describe the Hope Diamond as a 'superfine deep blue,' often comparing it to the color of a fine sapphire-for example, 'blue of the most beautiful blue sapphire' (Deulafait)-and describing its color as 'a sapphire blue.' Tavernier described it as a 'beautiful violet'. Current photographs of the Hope Diamond use high-intensity light sources that tend to maximize the brilliance of gemstones. The Hope Diamond in the National Museum of Natural History, Washington D.C., 2014 Visually, the gray modifier (mask) is so dark (indigo) that it produces an 'inky' effect, appearing almost blackish-blue in incandescent light. In 1996, the Gemological Institute of America examined the diamond and, using their proprietary scale, graded it fancy deep grayish blue. Blue diamonds similar to the Hope can be shown by colorimetric measurements to be grayer (lower in saturation) than blue sapphires.

Color: It has been described as being a 'fancy dark greyish-blue' as well as 'dark blue in color,' or having a 'steely-blue' color.

Size and shape: The diamond has been compared in size and shape to a pigeon egg or a walnut that is pear-shaped.

Weight: In December 1988, the Gemological Institute of America's laboratory determined the diamond to weigh 45.52 carats (9.104 g 0.3211 oz).

It has been described as the 'most famous diamond in the world'.

The Hope Diamond has changed hands numerous times on its way from Hyderabad, India, to France, Great Britain, and the United States, where it is on public display. It is a dark greyish-blue color under ordinary light because of trace amounts of boron within its crystal structure, and exhibits a red phosphorescence under exposure to ultraviolet light. It is currently housed in the National Gem and Mineral collection at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. The Hope Diamond, also known as Le Bijou du Roi ('the King's Jewel'), Le bleu de France ('the French Blue'), and the Tavernier Blue, is a large, 45.52-carat (9.104 g 0.3211 oz), deep-blue diamond, studded in a pendant Toison d ’or. New York gem merchant Harry Winston purchased the diamond in 1949, touring it for several years before donating it in 1958 to the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in the United States, where it is on permanent exhibition.Ĭlassification The Hope Diamond in 1974 The diamond has had several owners, including Washington socialite Evalyn Walsh McLean, who was often seen wearing it. It was stolen in 1792 and re-cut with the largest section of the diamond appearing under the Hope name in an 1839 gem catalogue from the Hope banking family.

The stone was cut and renamed the French Blue ( Le bleu de France) Tavernier sold the stone to King Louis XIV of France in 1668. The earliest records of the diamond show that French gem merchant Jean-Baptiste Tavernier purchased it in 1666 as the Tavernier Blue. The stone is one of the Golconda diamonds. Its exceptional size has revealed new information about the formation of diamonds. It is blue in color due to trace amounts of boron. The Hope Diamond is a 45.52 carats (9.104 g 0.3211 oz) diamond extracted in the 17th century from the Kollur Mine in Guntur, India. The Hope Diamond in the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C.

Flawless touch cleaning