The Story of Buckingham Palace and Red Ruby Jewelry

Under Buckingham Palace, in a closely guarded vault, is all of the Queen of England’s personal jewelry: the total value of which is a over $57 million.  One of the most interesting pieces is the Timur Ruby, which made its way to England in 1849 via the ‘The British East India Company'.  It was only after the Timur Ruby had spent some 60 years locked away in obscurity that it was finally recognized by the inscriptions carved into the gemstone. The longest of the six inscriptions is written in Persian: "This is the Ruby from the twenty-five thousand genuine jewels of the King of Kings the Sultan Sahib Qiran, which in the year 1740 A.D. from the collection of jewels of Hindustan, reached this place (Isfahan)."  Unfortunately for the Queen, the 352.50-carat Timur Ruby is not a Ruby at all, in fact it turned out to be a spinel.

The lesson: Always check with South Gap for your jewelry from around the world :)