The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1886-04-28
THE SANCY DIAMOND.
History of Il Famous Brilliant.

One of the best-known diamonds IN
Europe down to the close of the last
century was the famous Sancy. As is
the case with all prominent gems of this
species, many legends, some of pleasant
some of q painful character, are con-
nectcd with it. One legend of the
Sancy is thus narrated:
The beautiful diamond inventoried as
the Sancy, and of the weight of 80 1915
carats, and valued at 100000 francs,
was stolen and never recovered. This
gem has been associated with the for
tunes of the redoubtable Burgundian
warrior, Charles the Bold, and its his
tory has done more to perpetuate his
name than the record of all his misdeeds
and his desperate battles. To prove,
however, that this is the identical gem
lost by the Swiss will be difficult task,
for the antiquarics have unearthed more
Sancy diamonds than there were Rich
monds in the field. The name of Sancy
has, indeed, become famous by en-
bracing in one story the fortunes of
three distinct gems. The erudite King
has patiently traced out the traditions
connected with the name Sancy, and
appears to prove that three stories in
stead of one are included in the history
of Baron Sancy. But the stone that
was stolen from the French casket in
1892 is inventoried at the weight of 80
1916 carats, while the gem that has
lately gone back to India, and is sup
posed to be the stolen gem, weighs
quite 81 carats. Here is new mystery
for the antiquaries to clear away, or
did Belattre and his associates, who
made out this inventory with exceeding
care, write thirty instead of ffty-three?
The histories of these diamonds are so
interesting that we will attempt to re-
peat them here, following, in part, the
views of King. Not long after the in
rention, by Berquen, of diamond-cut-
ting by the process of abrasion, Charles
the Bold, then in the full blaze of mar
tial glory, submitted to him three large
rough diamonds. The native of Bruges
succeeded so well in polishing them
that Charles presented him with the
princely sum Of 5000 ducats. One of
these gems Charles gave to Pope Sextus
", and it was mounted in the tiara,
where it Is said to remain. The second
was presented to Louis XI. of France;
while the third was reserved by the
Burgundian hero, and set in grotesque
manner to be worn as a personal orna-
ment. This jewel, of true barbaric de-
sign, was formed of triangular shape,
with the newly-cut diamond in the
center. This diamond was fve-eighths
of an inch in its widest diameter, and
was shaped as pyramid, with the apex
cut into a four-rayed star in relief.
Around the gem was set three large
Balais rubies and four magnificent
pearls, each more than half an inch in
diameter. One of the Fugger family, in
1865, made careful drawing of the
Jewel, with written description of it,
and these were afterward published by
Lembeccius in his ..Bibliotheca CseSa-
rea;'' so there can be no doubt about
the appearance Of the original diamond
of Charles the Bold in its early days.
When the duke led his band of free
booters into Switzerland on his long
projected forav, he took most of his
gems along with him, not dreaming of
disaster, and probably loving to view
his treasures even amid the hardships
of the campaign. Rough soldiers are
sometimes as fond of the beautiful in
art and nature as more delicate and re-
fined organizations. and Charles the
Bold and Souyarof are not the only
examples The terrific onslaught of the
Swiss at Grandson crushed the Burgun-
dian ranks so quickly that Charles had
only time to escape with his sword,
leaving all his cherished treasures in
the hands of the dauntless noun
taincerS.
In the sack of the camp which
speedily followed the rout, i soldier
found the golden box in which the
famous pendant was kept, but regard
ing the jewel as gaudy and worthless
bauble, he tossed it away under a wagon
and retained the box only. Shortly
afterWard he began to suspect that the
contents of so beautiful 4 box must have
some value, and, returning to the place,
he recovered the despised jewel. He
did not long after retain his treasure,
but sold it to priest for florin. The
priest also did not appear to have
high regard for his purchase, for he dis
posed Of it to the magistrates of his own
canton for francs. When it became
known that the Bcrnese government
had possession of the dukes famous
jewels, Jacob Fugger, one of the mem
bers of the celebrated Nuremberg fami-
", went to Bernc and negotiated for
their purchase. The famous pendant,
together with the dukes cap, which was
made of silk covered with pearls and
Balais rubies, and plume case set with
diamonds. pearls, and Balais rubies
were bought for the sum of 47,OOO
francs. Fugger retained the pendant
in his possession at Nuremberg for
many years, indulging in the hope, It
has been said, that the dukes great
grandson, the Emperor Charles ",
would purchase it as q family relic.
When the celebrated capitalist died the
ornament was still in his possession,
but his great-nephcw, who inherited the
Jewel, sold it to Henry VIII. of England
After the death of this monarch his
daughter presented the diamond to her
bridegroom, and thus, by 4 remarkable
coincidence, and after an absence of
seventy-six years, the royal gem was
again restored to the rightful heir of its
original owner.-St. LOUIS Glo6e-Den1-
0crGt.
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