166 THE GREAT DIAMONDS OF THE WORLD.
to the representative, in the fourth descent, of its original owner, Charles the Bold, of Burgundy.
It
is thus placed beyond doubt that the stone lost by Charles, whether at
Granson or Nancy, ultimately found its way through Switzerland, and
Jacob Fugger, and his great nephew J. J. Fugger, into the possession of
Henry VIII., by whose daughter Mary it was presented to Philip II. But
the " Florentine " passed directly from the Grand Duke of Tuscany to
Maria Theresa. Consequently the introduction of the Fugger family into
the above official account of the stone, with which they had nothing to
do, arises out of a misconception or a confusion of the traditions
associated with two distinct gems. It thus appears that the "
Florentine" cannot clearly be traced to Charles the Bold at all. Its
authentic history really begins with the Grand Duke of Tuscany, in
whose possession it was when examined and weighed by Tavernier. Its
form and treatment (" cut on all sides in facets ") are distinctly
Indian, which again renders it extremely improbable that this stone was
one of those manipulated by De Berquem for the Bur-gundian prince. We
are thus led to the conclusion that the " Florentine " probably reached
Italy direct from the East, and that the many stories and legends
associated with Charles the Bold and his regalia have been transferred
to the " Florentine" through the ignorance of writers who lived long
after the events they were describing.
Whatever
doubt might remain on this point is disposed of by a consideration of
the respective forms of the stones themselves. Both are said
