no less than £ 30,000,
probably not an excessive figure considering its absolutely unique
character, faultless texture and exquisite form. It is unusually thick,
and measures 7/8 of an inch in breadth, by 1 1/8 in length. With regard
to the smallest of the three fragments, referred to in our account of
the French " Blue," and which weighs 1 1/4 carat, we may state,
to complete the subject, that it was purchased in Vienna some twenty
years ago, by Messrs. Hertz & Co., one of the largest gem merchants
in Paris. About six years since we bought it of them for £300, and it
now figures as one of the most conspicuous stones in a butterfly,
composed of diamonds of all known colours. This lovely diamond
butterfly is often seen standing out conspicuously, as one of the
rarest jewels in the world, in the London salons.
