XII. DARYA-I-NÜR.
A
City of Gems and Jewels—Nadir Shah's Descent on Delhi —Indiscriminate
Slaughter and Plunder—The Shah of Persia's Largest Diamond, " Sea of
Light "—Its Shape andCharacter— Is the "Darya-i-Nür" the Missing "
Mogul ?"—" Opinions Differ "—A Reliable Judgment.
OHAMMED Shah, who inherited the
spoils extorted by his progenitors from
the unhappy kings of Golconda and
Beejapoor, sat upon the throne of
Delhi, a mark for any adventurous warrior who
had the courage to descend the Suleiman range,
and, crossing the Indus, march straight to the
most luxurious capital of the Eastern empire.
Jewels of unequalled magnitude and lustre were
openly exposed in durbars of the Palace, on the
holy shrines, and in the princely demesnes of its
Maharajah, its nobles and its merchants. Nothing
in the history of modern times can equal the inroad
of the humbly-born sheep-skin clothier, Nadir Shah,
who had mounted the throne of Persia. Without
warning, this warrior-prince came boldly on the
devoted city, and having plundered its palaces, laid
waste, its populous streets, -which he choked up with
the dead of his opponents. He removed his booty
with reckless prodigality, amidst the fire and smoke
of the devastated public buildings. Nothing of value
escaped the rapine of this merciless murderer. The
