Loose Diamonds

According to accounts, when Nasseridin Shah met Queen Victoria in Windsor Castle in 1873, he had five rows of diamonds and 5 large spinels pinned to his chest. Photographs of Nasseridin Shah, and his successors, show them wearing large diamonds on their chest too. However, as fashions changed, these diamonds were left with the rest of the loose gems in the treasury. In addition to the tens of large diamonds which are individually on display in the treasury, there are thousands of smaller diamonds which are displayed, piled onto 2 trays. Hundreds of these diamonds were selected for the construction of the Empress Farah's crown, but there are so many loose diamonds in the piles that their absence was not apparent to the eye.

The diamonds seen in this picture are just a sample of the loose diamonds in the treasury. The tray itself is 20 cm. (8 in.) wide, and the smallest diamond on the tray is 5 cts.