Iconic golf ball-sized Florentine diamond once owned by Medici and Habsburg dynasties is FOUND in unusual location 100 years after ‘vanishing’
A giant Florentine diamond once thought to have disappeared and belonged to two of Europe’s most powerful dynasties has been discovered in a shocking location.
The New York Times reported that the 137-carat Florentine Diamond belonging to the Habsburg family was sought in a bank vault in Canada. reported.
The apparent disappearance of the precious jewel had been the subject of widespread speculation for decades.
People believed that the diamond was lost or stolen.
The Habsburg family, II. He revealed that it had been stored in a safe since World War II.
The history of the diamond began in 1918, towards the end of the First World War, with the fall of the monarchy of King Charles I of Austria.
At the height of its power, the House of Habsburg was one of the leading and most influential rulers in Europe.
While Charles went into exile, I sent the diamond and other centuries-old jewels to Switzerland for safekeeping.
The 137-carat Florentine Diamond was tracked to a bank vault in Canada (photo of a glass replica of the gem)
While Charles I went into exile, I sent the diamond to Switzerland for safekeeping (Photo of Charles I with Queen Zita Von Bourbon-Parma)
After the monarch died on the Portuguese island of Madeira, his wife, Zita of Bourbon-Parma, and their children moved to Spain and later Belgium.
As Nazi rule spread across Europe, Zita and her eldest son, crown prince Otto von Habsburg, fiercely opposed the rise of Adolf Hitler.
However, when the Nazis annexed Austria in 1938, Otto was declared an enemy of the state.
According to the New York Times, Zita had to flee to the USA again two years later.
He was carrying the jewelry in a small cardboard bag, family members said.
The family reached Canada with the help of America and settled in Quebec.
‘My grandmother felt very safe. He could finally breathe,” said Karl von Habsburg-Lothringen, one of Charles I’s grandsons.
‘I think at that stage the little bag went into a bank vault and that was it. And it just remained in the bank’s safe.’
The precious jewel’s apparent disappearance has been the subject of widespread speculation for decades
Zita returned to Europe in 1953 and died in 1989, aged 96.
While he lived his life, unbeknownst to the world, the prestigious diamond remained in Canada.
“I think he wanted to make sure this didn’t happen in his lifetime,” Habsburg-Lothringen added.
‘I have a feeling he’s very pleased that he saved some of the family’s important belongings.’
He said his grandmother understood the importance of diamonds.
‘This was very important to him historically,’ von Habsburg-Lothringen said.
‘Because he was a very historical thinker.’
The authenticity of the diamond was confirmed by Christoph Köchert, who was once the jeweler of the Austrian imperial court.
Zita (right) and her eldest son, crown prince Otto von Habsburg (center), strongly opposed the rise of Adolf Hitler
Köchert noted to the New York Times that the cut pattern of the diamond ‘almost completely corresponds to the representations in historical sources’ and that the authenticity of the stone was also confirmed using an electronic testing device.
Before the Florentine diamond became the property of the Habsburg family, it already belonged to one of the most powerful families in Europe.
The diamond was originally the property of the Medici family of Florence, but came into the Habsburg dynasty in the 18th century with the marriage of Francis Stephen and Archduchess Maria Theresa of Austria.
The Habsburg family wants to display the diamond in Canada as a sign of gratitude to the country that hosted the empress and her children.
‘Sometimes they have to be exhibited in Canada for people to really see these pieces,’ Habsburg-Lothringen said.
But the diamond may be back in action soon.
According to the New York Times, Austria has committed to an ‘immediate investigation’ into whether the diamond belongs to the country.
Austrian Vice-Chancellor Andreas Babler said, “If it turns out that the Florence Diamond belongs to the Republic of Austria, I will initiate the process of returning the jewel.”
