458 THE BOOK OF THE PEARL
fection,
a little flat on one side and weighing fifty-six ratis ; this had been
presented to the Great Mogul by Shah Abbas II, King of Persia, (d)
Three round yellowish pearls weighing from twenty-five to twenty-eight
ratis each, (e) A perfectly round pearl, thirty-five and a half ratis,
white and perfect in all respects. This was the only jewel purchased by
the Great Mogul himself, the others being inherited or coming to him as
presents, (f) Two pearls perfectly shaped and equal, each weighing
twenty-five and a quarter ratis. (g) Also two chains, one of pearls and
rubies of different shapes pierced like the pearls ; the other of
pearls and emeralds, round and bored. All of these pearls were round
and ranged in weight from ten to twelve ratis each.1
Peacock Throne. The
famous Takht-i-Tâ'ûs, or "Peacock Throne," at Delhi doubtless contained
the greatest accumulation of gems in the seventeenth century. It was
completed, in the eighth year of his reign (1044 A.H., 1634 A.D.) by
Shah Jehan, greatest of Mogul sovereigns, who likewise built the Taj
Mahal at Agra, one of the most beautiful edifices ever designed by man.
Abd-al-Hamid, of Lahore, in his Pâd-shâh-nâmah, "Book of the King,"
composed prior to 1654, writes as follows:2
In
the course of years many valuable gems had come into the imperial
jewel-house, each one of which might serve as an ear-drop for Venus or
as an adornment for the girdle of the Sun. Upon the accession of the
emperor, it occurred to him that, in the opinion of far-seeing men the
acquisition of such rare jewels and the keeping of such wonderful
brilliants could render but one service, that of adorning the throne of
the empire. They ought, therefore, to be put to such a use that
beholders might benefit by their splendour and that majesty might shine
with increased brilliancy.
As
described by Tavernier in 1676, great quantities of pearls were used in
the ornamentation of this throne, the arched roof, the supporting
pillars, the adjacent sun-umbrellas, being well covered with these
gems, many of them of great value. The choicest one was pear-shaped,
yellowish in color, and weighed about fifty carats (200 grains) ;3
this was suspended from a great ruby which ornamented the breast of the
peacock. "But that which in my opinion is the most costly thing about
this magnificent throne is that the twelve columns supporting the
canopy are surrounded with beautiful rows of pearls, which are round
and of fine water, and weigh from 6 to 10 carats each [24 to 40
grains]."4 The total value of the jewels entering into the
1 Tavernier, "Travels in India," London, ed. by A. V. W. Jackson, New York, 1907, 1889, Vol. I, pp. 397-399- P· 324-
2 Sir Henry Miers Elliot, "The Moham- s See Fig. 2 of Tavernier's diagram, medan Period as described by Its Own His- * Tavernier, "Travels in India," trans, by torians," Vol. V. of "The History of India," V. Ball, London, 1889, Vol. II, p. 384.
