Diamond & Ruby Aigrette

This aigrette is made of solid gold and studded with diamonds. Around the center sunburst, the words "Al-Sultan Ibn-Sultan Fath-Ali Shah Qajar" appear in rubies. The word Qajar is misspelled, suggesting that the jeweller who designed the piece did not have an adequate grasp of Farsi, the Persian language. Thus, it is believed that this is one of three aigrettes presented by Russia's Czar Alexander I to Fathali Shah in 1817. The total height of the aigrette is 20.5 cm. (8 in.) and the largest diamond is 12 cts.

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