Stunning jewellery collection of Nizam of Hyderabad

Fabulous jewels of the Nizam of Hyderabad including the legendary Imperial (Jacob) diamond.

In 1972 the prize jewels of the Nizams of Hyderabad were offered for sale to the Government of India for Rupees 218 crore. The deal was struck. However, it took almost 23 years to finally acquire the jewels, after prolonged court cases and colossal expenses.

First, the jewels were shifted to the vaults of the Reserve Bank of India from the Hongkong Bank where they were being held earlier. Later, the jewellery was exhibited for the first time at the National Museum in New Delhi for about two months during September - December, 2001.

The 173 piece collection was built up over seven generations of the Asaf Jahis or the Nizams as the rulers of Hyderabad were called. Although the Nizams ruled over the Deccan, they had adopted the lifestyle, court traditions and administrative practices of the Mughals.

The jewellery, therefore, is a synthesis of Mughal, deccani, as well as European influences. It reflects the ethos of a dynasty that originated in the Mughal court, ruled the Deccan and was a staunch ally of the British empire. It was during the seventh and the last Nizams -Mir Osman Ali Khan- time that care was taken to preserve the timeless treasure. It was difficult for the Nizams, who had a large family and a retinue of servants, to take care of their own.

It was then that Mir Osman Ali Khan, with a view to safeguarding this fabulous wealth, started liquidating a portion of his astronomical fortune and allocated it to a series of trusts. The most unique of these was the Nizam Jewellery Trust, being the only one to have been established by an Indian ruler. He also created a supplementary Jewellery Trust, incorporated in 1951, being the only one to have been established by an Indian ruler. He also created another supplementary Jewellery Trust after allocating gifts to his grandsons in 1952. The trustees kept this treasure of great historical value in the vaults of the Hongkong Bank.

The present collection comprises a total of 173 items. The actual number of the pieces is 325 (counting individual pieces and not as pairs) excluding about 22 unset emeralds and the legendary Jacob diamond.

The collection includes a number of sarpench (bejew-elled headgear), necklaces, waist-belts, buckles, brace-lets, anklets, armlets, toe-rings, finger -rings, pocket watches, watch chains, buttons and cuff-links, to name but a few. All the jewels are flamboyant, yet, there are certain pieces which stand out for their unique quality, size and colour, and most importantly, for their workmanship.

Most of the diamonds used in the jewellery came from the mines in Golconda which were owned by the Nizams. This is one reason why all the pieces invariably have diamonds that are either uncut or cut into magnificent pieces by the local artisans. The er and brilliance of the Golconda diamonds is most apparent in the sarpenchs, especially those that are to be worn over the headgear. These are in gold, set with diamonds, emerald beads and cabochon rubies. There is a very special sarpench which was made for a young prince, Mahabub Ali, when he ascended the throne. It is called Bachkana sarpench and has been chosen to be the logo of the exhibition. The brilliance of Golconda diamonds set in this piece outshines that in any other piece. A solitaire set in gold, with five smaller diamonds on each side, has on its top an exquisite bird crafted with small diamonds for its plumage and a ruby as its eye. Interestingly, the bird holds a tiny taveez (lucky charm) in its beak.

Among the exhibited pieces, the imperial diamond, known as Jacob diamond, is a fabulous piece, Weighing 184.75 carats, this sparkling beauty is double the size of the Koh-i-Noor diamond and is said to be the seventh largest in the world. It was acquired by the sixth Nizam, Mir Mahabub Ali Pasha in 1891 from a Jewish trader, A.K. Jacob and hence the name.

** RARE interviews with 8th Nizam of Hyderabad -
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• jacob
• jewelry
• king
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• treasure

[ThePseudoBasher]

These people who are saying that they miss that invader nizam's rule are the same people who also miss British rule in India...they love to be ruled by invaders, either British or Turkic

[raje2220]

i wish am born into the nizam family

[PartyAllSeason]

@cuteguyalone2003 i think your mum was also in nizam's harem...haha, that is why u r feeling sad for him

[PartyAllSeason]

@cuteguyalone2003 no you dirty son of a whore....YOUR mother and sister warmed the beds of these thug nizams i.e why you are a MUSLIM...muslims in South ASIA are product of rape by these turkic invader thugs...your blood is the blood of rape, ur forefathers were poor hindus, who became the slaves of these foreign nizam or nawab and became MUSLIM....we Hindus of today were rich and powerful and protected our religion and culture haha...unlike you poor sons of whores and pimp aka muslims of s asia

[cuteguyalone2003]

before Jesus christ came in this world, there was Hinduism in USA and Europe, now go and ask them to give the same Hindus Hands to rule... There are many temples in USA, which are thousands of years old, go and ask them to give USA in Hindus hands.. U are alive just because these Muslim rulers wer good, they might have done wat the christians did in USA and Europe, but they dint do that... Ur knowledge about history is too weak...

[cuteguyalone2003]

ThePseudoBasher ... And for your Information, The Muslim rulers were invited by the hindu rulers to maintain peace in this region.. The muslim rulers gave the women equal rights as men first.. Earlier Hindu rulers use to have hundreds of wives,women were treated like bitches and slaves... Muslim taught hw to wear clothes when the ppl here in India used only leaf and some metals to cover their body...

[cuteguyalone2003]

ThePseudoBasher ... hahahaha another nonsense comment by this bugger... first of all your ancestors allowed their sisters and mothers to sleep with the soldiers of Nizam, just to meet their desires of getting noted there.. who is a turkic???? u r one illiterate who don't even know true history.. The jewels were frm the different parts of the world gifted to The Nizam... He was the most respectable ruler in the history of India, not like ur Hindu rulers..

[hamedishere]

Wow...Nizams were amazing...wish we had the same rule still...see what happened in 60 years...devastation..

[hempadia]

@oceaniaclassics Thanks so much for posting this awesome video. The collection is just amazing.