Louis I, Duke of Orléans
The diamond now known as the "Sancy" began as an even larger diamond called the "Balle de Flandres" with a possible weight of over . The "Balle" was part of the dowry of Valentina Visconti when she married Louis I, Duke of Orléans (the younger brother of King Charles VI of France) in 1398. While the precise path of ownership over the next 75 years is uncertain, the stone found its way to Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, who lost it together with an array of other treasures - including his silver bath and the Three Brothers jewel - in the Battle of Grandson in 1476. Balfour (2009) posits that this diamond is the same stone that eventually became the "Sancy".