chap, xxii LARGE RUBIES 101
many
other precious things, on the King's festival, that is to say, the day
whereon he is weighed, as I have elsewhere said. This stone having been
priced at a little less than it cost, there happened to be present at
that time an old Indian who had previously been chief jeweller to the
King, but had been dismissed from his charge through jealousy. Having
taken this stone in his hands, he maintained that it was not a balass *
ruby, that Ja'far Khan had been cheated, and that the stone was not
worth more than 500 rupees. The King having been informed of the
discussion,' summoned the old Indian, with all the other jewellers,
who* maintained on their side that the stone was a balass ruby. As in
the whole Empire of the Great Mogul there was no one more proficient in
the knowledge of stones than Shahjahan, who was kept as a prisoner at
Agra by Aurangzeb, his son, the latter sent the stone to the Emperor,
his father, asking for his opinion. After full consideration he
confirmed the verdict of the old jeweller, and said that it was not a
balass ruby, and that its value did not exceed 500 rupees. The stone
having been returned to Aurangzeb, he compelled the merchant who had
sold it to take it back and return the money he had received.
Nos.
3 and 4 are figures of a ruby which belongs to the King of Bijapur. No.
4 shows the height of the stone above the ring, and No. 3 the circuit
of the chaton.2 It weighs 14 mangelins, which equal 17 1/2 of our carats, the mangelin at Bijapur being 5 grains.3 It is hollowed from beneath, [i. e. cut en cabuchon] clean,
and of the first quality. The King of Bijapur bought it in the year
1653 for the sum of 14,200 new pagodas, the pagoda being then worth 3
1/2 rupees, this, in our money, would be equal to 74,550 livres.4
value of every kind of precious stone, discovered it to be worth less than
five hundred, to the great confusion of the principal Jewellers, who in
this instance had been completely deceived.'
1 Ballet in the original, for balass. (See vol. i. 303 n.)
* The chaton is the bezel of a ring which holds a jewel in position.
' On p. 98 the Bijapur mangelin is said to be equal to If carats
(i.e. 5J diamond grains), and 14 mangelins should therefore be equal
to 19| carats. 4 £5,591 5s.
