The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-10-27
JEWELS IN THE oLDEN TIMES.
THE PART THEY HAVE PLAYED IN
HISTORY.

! GIOuS inc OAO Das - nc
Turkish SuItans and the Maham-
medan Prfnces-TippOo Sahib's
Treasury in India said to Have
Contained -Four Hundred Million
Dollars in Jewels.
From the Baltimore American.
There is a fascination about precious
stones to which the least unostentatious is
susceptible, for, although custom has now
debarred their eXtravagant use upon men 8
costumes, there is still a latent current of
the old pride in their possession which will
probably never die out The rareness and
beauty of jewels is responsible for the
court paid them, for certainly there is
nothing more worthy of admiration than
they, unless it be the exquisite perfection
of flower-and the multi-colored gems
so arduously wrested from the bosom of
earth. have been llkened to the flowers she
jealousy holds in the dark folds of her
mantle.
The social distribution of precious stones
has always been limited; and on account
of their imperishable nature, they have dc
scended by inheritance, with the titles and
estates of their proprietors so that, with
all the accumulatons of the past, and the
new accessions from recent mines. there
is little probability that they will ever
cease to be precious on account of their
abundance and general use.
| Modern uses TO which jewels are put in
the way of personal adornmeut, says n
writer in the st. Louis Globe Democrat,
| is comparatively limited, when one CON
siders the customs of bygone days, good
taste combining the wearing TO certain gems
for supply may be; but there vas a time
when the social anding. dignity and mi
portance in the community was almost di-
| rectly regulated by the condemnation in
/ the way of Jewe's and gold VdriouSly dis
| trbuted on the costume.
Imagination becomes confused before The
authentic reports of the fabulous wealth
| Of grandees and potentates in the p1st,an
| of the barbaric displays of precious stor'
in their ceremonial regalia. 1t is interest
ing to read in the accounts of some IA
nous collections by S. M. Burnham in his
unique work on this subject and but for
the indispu able verify of the statements,
one would be disposed to regard them as
| fabrications before which the Arabian
Nights would pale and be vapd.
Leaving ancient Egyptian, Phoenician.
Roman, Grecian, Gothic and Anglo-Saxon
Celebrations to the Imagination, the most
interesting reading comes to us in the his
tory of the jewel collections of which VIC
have heard just enough to sharpen the
desire 10 know more, and whose reports
carry weight of creduity which con-
vincingly attacks our belief, although we
shade our eyes of imagination lest they
become dazzled thereby.
Beginning with the dreamland of our
childhood our attention is called to The
Turkish empire. prominent among East
ern countries for richnes of ornaments.
and to the vast wealth of the Sultan in
this particular. AT the time of the Turk
ish conquest Constantinopie was a vast
storehouse for the rarest aud fast precious
spoils in the world. Whatever was most
beautiful in art, whatever was most preci-
Gus in nature had drifted thither, and this
fact explains why so many remarkable
and costly gems are owned by the i'm
perial government or by the Turkish no.
bihty. 1t is said that the eXtravagant
use by the latter during some periods in
the history of this nation, was incred-
ible.
One of the pashas, at his death alluded
to by Mr. Hamlin, left thirty-five CUR
asses studded with rubies, fifteen strings
of large pearls besides sixty bushels of
small pearls and numerous articles COW
cred with diamonds, while an officer of
state adorned his garden at his country
seat with parterres of flowers composed
of gems in imitation Of natural Veseta-
ton It is hardly necessary to refer to
the richness and abundance of the Sui
tans personal ornaments, as it is to be
taken for granted that luxurious deSpot
would not be surpassed in magnifcence
by his vassals.
The luxurious habits of the Turkish sui
tans were initiated by all the Mohamme-
dan princes, and perhaps surpassed by the
nnogul emperors of India, whose affiuence
in precious stones was inconceivable. The
| accounts given by travellers who visited
| holt
nier says there were, in all, seven impe-
| rial thrones all of Internationally covered
with diamonds, rubies, emeralds and
pearls but for richness and novelty of
design the famous peacock throne" OF
| Shah Jehan exceeded all others. The out
spread tail comprised sapphires and other
| gems to present the natural plumage OF
The bird; the body was of enameled gold
studded with precious stones, while from
| the breast was suspended large ruby
with a pear-shaped pearl of fifty carats'
weight for a pendant. The peacock was
placed over the throne, and on each side
| were arranged bouquets Of flowers made
of gold and gems The throne itself, six
feet in length and four in width, was OF
| solid gold covered with precious stones,
Including more than one hundred rubies,
weighing from 100 to 200 carats each, and
100 emeralds from thirty TO sixty carats
in weight
TippOo Sahib's Collection.
The natives of India have always exhlh-
tied an extreme fondness for precious
stones. comprising some of the most splep-
did diamonds, pearls rubies, sapphires and
emeralds anywhere to be found. The
treasury of Tfppoo Sahib, after his de-
feat by the English in 17S6. was found TO
contain Jewels estimated at the enormous
sum of $500 100000, the term jewel here re-
ferring to an ornament of gold set with
precious stones. The Prince of Baroda, a
most Jealous collector, possessed uncount-
ed treasures In gems. including many of
European celebrity. 1t has been said that
the Jewels of an Indian belle aggregate
more than thirty pounds in weight The
dress of Oriental women was always eX-
nensive. and has not changed materially
in that matter since the times Of the He
brew prophets, by whom they were CEN
sured for their extravaganza in earrings
! finger rings, chains, bracelets. nose jewels,
head bands, tablets or pendants and ank-
| let's. though nearly all the same kind of