Stolen in 1792, the French Blue diamond's fate puzzled historians for centuries
Stolen along with the French Crown jewels, this prized blue diamond stayed lost for centuries until the detective work of historians and scientists cracked the case.
María Pilar Queralt del Hierro
"Some chroniclers believe that the French Blue didn’t go to London with Lordonner. Instead, it arrived much later in a scenario worthy of a political thriller. According to this theory, the revolutionary armies desperately needed a victory around the time Austria and Prussia were threatening to invade France in 1792. Led by the Prussian Duke of Brunswick, an invasion was repelled by the French at Valmy and retreated back over the Rhine on September 20. Revolutionary momentum returned and fervour soared...."
They certainly like to toss "centuries" around as if this diamond had been missing since the end of the Renaissance. I prefer to think of the French Blue as the tacky diamond necklace in James Cameron's sprawling version of Titanic. And is it just me, but wasn't that Order of the Golden Fleece the ugliest waste of gemstones in historical memory? That poor ram/lamb, all trussed up like it was on its way to a backyard barbeque. Typical of Decadent Louie, though.