Daniel Eliason ( – 17 November 1824) was a London diamond merchant in the late 18th century and early 19th century.

Life

He was in partnership with Abraham Goldsmid, and married his sister, Sarah Goldsmid. It was reported in 1822 that a violet-coloured diamond had been purchased by George IV for £20,000 () and that Mr. Eliason of Hatton Garden was setting it. His death was reported in the ''New Times (London)'' on 19 December with the following short obituary:

Hope Diamond

A blue diamond with the same shape, size, and color as the Hope Diamond was recorded in Eliason's possession in September 1812, the earliest point when the history of the Hope Diamond can be definitively fixed.

John Francillon John Francillon (1744–1816) was a jeweler and lapidary, an English naturalist and an entomologist of Huguenot descent. Francillon was a London jeweller who was also a dealer in natural history specimens and paintings. He was the agent for Joh ...

wrote a memorandum describing the large superfine blue diamond. It is often pointed out that this date was almost exactly 20 years after the theft of the French Blue, just as the statute of limitations for the crime had expired. Eliason's diamond may have been acquired by King

George IV of the United Kingdom George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from the death of his father, King George III, on 29 January 1820, until his own death ten y ...

. There is no record of the ownership in the Royal Archives at Windsor, but some secondary evidence exists in the form of contemporary writings and artwork, and George IV tended to commingle the state property of the Royal Jewels with family heirlooms and his own personal property. It is thought that Francis Beaulieu, who came from Marseille to London, arranged to sell the diamond to Eliason. Beaulieu fell terribly ill from jail fever and died in a poor humble lodging. When Eliason went round to pay over the money Beaulieu was dead and the money never changed hands. Eliason killed himself some months afterwards, but before he did so he sold the diamond (this was in about 1830) to

Henry Thomas Hope Henry Thomas Hope (30 April 1808 – 4 December 1862) was a British MP and patron of the arts. Biography Henry Thomas Hope was born in London on 30 April 1808, the eldest of the three sons of the connoisseur Thomas Hope (1769–1831) and his ...

of Deepdene,

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

Susanne Steinem Patch Susanne Steinem Patch (February 19, 1925 – November 2, 2007) was an American gem expert and staff lawyer at the Federal Trade Commission. Early life Susanne Steinem was born in Toledo, Ohio, the daughter of Leo Steinem and Ruth Nuneviller Steine ...

, Blue Mystery: The Story of the Hope Diamond (Washington D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1976) 18.

References

English businesspeople 1750s births Year of birth uncertain 1824 deaths {{UK-business-bio-stub