TURKISH ROYAL JEWELS

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 231, 4 February 1911, Page 9

TURKISH ROYAL JEWELS

There have been many theories regarding tne mysterious disappearance of the deposed Sultan Abdul Hamid's jewels, says the Jewellers' Circular-Weekly. It has been said that they were confiscated by the Young Turks at the time of the Sultan's abdication and .sold for the benefit of the public funds. Other theories have beer advanced, but where the jewels actually are remains a mystery. The jewels which Abdul Hamid possessed are said to be of rare beauty and value, and to be well worthy of the interest evinced in them and tlieir present whereabouts. They were Abdul Hamid's personal property, and were never in the Turkish Treasury. The vast amount contained there is described by William E. Curtis in a recent letter from the Orient. In describing the jewels in tho Treasury, Mr. Curtis writes: "There are perhaps several thousands of precious stones. Many of them are uncut and all of them unset, kept in a most careless way in porcelain salad bowls that will hold a gallon each. "Five such bowls are filled with loose diamonds, rubies, emeralds, sapphires, turquoises, and other gems— half a bushel altogether. One emerald weighs two kilogrammes, and another is almost of the same size. They are said to be the largest in tie world. "Most of these jewels are gifts, heirlooms, and trophies of war. Some of them have been handed down through twenty-eight generations of Sultans, having been brought to Constantinople by Mohammed the Conqueror when he captured this city in the middle of the fifteenth century.

"No (mutter |how hard pressed the .Sultans have been for money at different times, they have refused to sell any of these treasures, although from time«to time they have selected some jewel or ornament—something that would not be missed —for a gift. Ther« is no such mass of useless wealth in all the world, except perhaps in the Treasury of the Kremlin of Moscow, although it is a questio* which is the more valuable." . "Hanging on the wall are several suits of armor of silver and gold set with jewels, weapons with scabbards of solid •gold and handles blazing with diamonds. There are collections of Imperial robes of the most exquisite silks, velvets and brocades. "There is t toilet table covered with diamonds, and a wash-bowl, pitcher, and other toilet articles encrusted with jew-

els. . There are cups of onyx, crystal and jade, stirrups and bits and bridle bits of gold. In the corner of a little case is a two-quart bowl filled with buttons, each set with a solitaire diamond—hundreds of them—which some time or another fastened the garments of an extravagant Sultan. "But the most gorgeous and overpowering object in the collection is a throne of gold, that looks like an ordin. ary divan with gilded arms and legs. It is upholstered with rich brocade, in which the designs are worked out with gold threads, and the legs and arms and seat are veneered in places witli rubies, emeralds and pearls. This throne was brought as loot of war from tho palace of the Shah of Persia, at Teheran, in rao2, by the Sultan Selim L, but is

not nearly so beautiful or so costly as the peacock throne, which is still in the Persian palace. "That was the throne of the Moguls of India, and stood in the hall of private audience, in the palace of Delhi. It was brought to Teheran by Nadir, Shah of Persia. This throne is believed to have been the most extravagant and costly piece of furniture ever made, and was'so called from having the figures of two peacocks standing behind it, their tails expanded to form a back ground for the figure of the Mogul when he occupied the seat ofi sovereignty. These figures of the birds were enamelled with sapphires, rubies, emeralds, pearls, and other precious stones of appropriate colors to represent life. "The throne itself was six feet long by four broad; it stood on six massive feet, which, with the body, were of solid gold, inlaw, with rubies, emeralds and diamonds. It was surmounted by a canopy of cloth of gold, supported by twelve golden pillars, all richly emblazoned with costly gems, anl a fringe of pearls ornamented the borders of the canopy. "-Between the two peacocks stood the figure of a parrot of the ordinary size, said to have been carved out of a single emerald. On each side of the throne stood an umbrella, one of the Oriental emblems of royalty. "They were'made of crimson velvet, richly ' embroidered and fringed with ■ pearls . The handles were eight feet high, of solid gold, and studded with diamonds. The cost of this superb work of nrt has been variously stated at sums varying from £1,000,000 to .£0.001).000. It was planned and executed under the supervision of Austin <le Bordeaux. 'Taveniier, a French (jeweller, who visited India in 1005, valued this whim of

extravagance at £8,000,000. Jonas Hallway estimates it as worth £11,250,000. It stood on a white marble plinth, on which is still to be deciphered the boast of the Moguls in (lowing Persian characters: •••If there lie a paradise on earth, it is even this, even this, even this.' "The new Government of Turkey lias !never even discussed the. sale of the hnass of jewels of the seraglio. Such a ithing has never been suggested, al-. ■fihough the Administration is in the 'greatest need of money. It is difficult to understand the awe and veneration with which the baubles are regarded."