Another
version of the story is given by Barbot, who states that the " Moon of
Mountains " fell into the hands of an Afghan chief, who sold it to an
Armenian named Shaffrass, a merchant in Bassorah, for 50,000 piastres.
Shaffrass kept it for twelve years, and then sent one of his brothers
to Amsterdam to treat for its sale, either with England or Russia.
After some protracted negotiations the latter Power acquired it for
450,000 silver roubles, and a patent of nobility to the seller ; for
thus are titles obtained in Russia." This reads like an editio expurgata of
the more romantic and popular account. But it has its value, in so far
as it associates the " Moon of Mountains " with Shaffrass, and thus
helps to distinguished this stone from the " Orloff," with which that
dealer was in no way connected.
But Barbot's story is itself merely a re-hash of the account given by P. S. Pallas in his Travels through the Southern Provinces of the Russian Empire, in 1793-4.
Although involving some repetition, it will be best to give the text of
Pallas in full, as it is constantly referred to by writers who have
never consulted the original, and who have consequently superadded
fresh errors to those for which Pallas is responsible. At p. 276 of the
first* volume of the English edition (London, 1812) Pallas writes :—
"
During my residence in Astrakhan I became acquainted with the heirs of
the late Grigori Safarov Shaffrass, the Armenian, who sold the
celebrated large diamond, which is now set in the Imperial sceptre of
