The Diamond Fund (russian: Алмазный фонд) is a unique collection of gems, jewelry and natural

nuggets Nuggets may refer to: Music * ''Nuggets'' (series), a series of compilation albums by Elektra Records, continued by Rhino * '' Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era, 1965–1968'' * '' Nuggets II: Original Artyfacts from ...

, which are stored and exhibited in the

Kremlin Armoury The Kremlin Armoury,Officially called the "Armou/ory Chamber" but also known as the cannon yard, the "Armou/ory Palace", the "Moscow Armou/ory", the "Armou/ory Museum", and the "Moscow Armou/ory Museum" but different from the Kremlin Arsenal. (r ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

. The Fund was opened in 1967 and its collection dates back to the Russian Crown treasury instituted by Emperor

Peter I of Russia Peter I ( – ), most commonly known as Peter the Great,) or Pyotr Alekséyevich ( rus, Пётр Алексе́евич, p=ˈpʲɵtr ɐlʲɪˈksʲejɪvʲɪtɕ, , group=pron was a Russian monarch who ruled the Tsardom of Russia from t ...

in 1719.

History

Imperial treasury

The gem collection of Peter I, established in 1719, was later stored in the Diamond Chamber (Бриллиантовая комната) in the

Winter Palace The Winter Palace ( rus, Зимний дворец, Zimnij dvorets, p=ˈzʲimnʲɪj dvɐˈrʲɛts) is a palace in Saint Petersburg that served as the official residence of the Emperor of all the Russias, Russian Emperor from 1732 to 1917. The p ...

. All succeeding monarchs added their contributions to the Chamber. A 1922 study by

Alexander Fersman Alexander Evgenyevich Fersman (; 8 November 1883 – 20 May 1945) was a prominent Soviet Russian geochemist and mineralogist, and a member of the Soviet Academy of Sciences (1919–1945). Early life and education Fersman was born in St. Peter ...

identified 85% of all exhibits to be from 1719 to 1855, to emperors

Peter I Peter I may refer to: Religious hierarchs * Saint Peter (c. 1 AD – c. 64–88 AD), a.k.a. Simon Peter, Simeon, or Simon, apostle of Jesus * Pope Peter I of Alexandria (died 311), revered as a saint * Peter I of Armenia (died 1058), Catholico ...

through Nicholas I, and only 15% attributed from the last three emperors.

Catherine the Great , en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes , house = , father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst , mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp , birth_date = , birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anhal ...

exhibited a particular interest for expensive rocks, even naming her stallion "Diamond." The Diamond Fund received more contributions from her than any other monarch.

Soviet Union

Preservation, sales and looting of Imperial treasures after the

Russian Revolution of 1917 The Russian Revolution was a period of political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and adopt a socialist form of government ...

are a matter of controversy and speculation. The Imperial collection was moved from

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

; the Soviet Diamond Fund was officially established in 1922. The treasure was first exhibited to the public in November 1967. Originally a short-term show, it became a permanent exhibition in 1968. During the late Soviet period, the value of the Fund's collection was estimated to be $7 billion.

Russian Federation

The Russian State retains the

monopoly A monopoly (from Greek language, Greek el, μόνος, mónos, single, alone, label=none and el, πωλεῖν, pōleîn, to sell, label=none), as described by Irving Fisher, is a market with the "absence of competition", creating a situati ...

for mining and distribution of gemstones, as set by the 1998 law ''"On precious metals and precious stones"''. Diamond Fund operations are regulated by the 1999 presidential decree
official text
. The Diamond Fund is part of a larger State Fund of Precious Stones, managed by the Ministry of Finance, and accumulates the most valuable items, in particular *All raw diamonds exceeding 50 carats (10 g) *All cut diamonds exceeding 20 carats (4 g), cut diamonds of exceptional quality exceeding 6 carats (1.2 g) *All raw emeralds, rubies, sapphires exceeding 30 carats (6 g) raw or 20 carats (4 g) cut *Unique nuggets,

amber Amber is fossilized tree resin that has been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since Neolithic times. Much valued from antiquity to the present as a gemstone, amber is made into a variety of decorative objects."Amber" (2004). In Ma ...

pearl A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle) of a living shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carb ...

and jewellery

Recent additions

*2006 – " The Creator" (Творец), mined in

Yakutia Sakha, officially the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia),, is the largest republic of Russia, located in the Russian Far East, along the Arctic Ocean, with a population of roughly 1 million. Sakha comprises half of the area of its governing Far Eas ...

in 2004. Third largest raw diamond in the Fund, 298.48 carats (59.696 g) *2003 – golden nugget, 33 kg *1989 – "

Alexander Pushkin Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (; rus, links=no, Александр Сергеевич ПушкинIn pre-Revolutionary script, his name was written ., r=Aleksandr Sergeyevich Pushkin, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsandr sʲɪrˈɡʲe(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈpuʂkʲɪn, ...

", second-largest raw diamond, 320.65 carats (64.130 g) *1980 – " XXVI Congress of CPSU", largest raw diamond, 342.57 carats (68.514 g)

Major exhibits

Seven Historical Gems

Orlov diamond The Orlov (sometimes spelled Orloff), also known as The Great Mughal Diamond, is a large diamond of Indian origin, currently displayed as a part of the Diamond Fund collection of Moscow's Kremlin Armoury. It is described as having the shape and ...

, 189.62 carats (37.924 g) * Shah diamond, 88.7 carats (17.7 g), first inscription dated 1591, a gift from the Shah of

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

in 1829 *Flat portrait diamond, 25 carats (5 g) *Red

spinel Spinel () is the magnesium/aluminium member of the larger spinel group of minerals. It has the formula in the cubic crystal system. Its name comes from the Latin word , which means ''spine'' in reference to its pointed crystals. Properties S ...

, set in the

Imperial Crown of Russia The Imperial Crown of Russia (russian: Императорская Корона России), also known as the Great Imperial Crown (russian: Великая Императорская Корона), was used by the monarchs of Russia from 1762 ...

, 398.72 carats (79.744 g), purchased in China in 1676 *

Sapphire Sapphire is a precious gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum, consisting of aluminium oxide () with trace amounts of elements such as iron, titanium, chromium, vanadium, or magnesium. The name sapphire is derived via the Latin "sapphir ...

, 260.37 carats (52.074 g) *

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

emerald Emerald is a gemstone and a variety of the mineral beryl (Be3Al2(SiO3)6) colored green by trace amounts of chromium or sometimes vanadium.Hurlbut, Cornelius S. Jr. and Kammerling, Robert C. (1991) ''Gemology'', John Wiley & Sons, New York, p ...

, 136.25 carats (27.250 g) *Olive-green chrysolite, 192.6 carats (38.52 g)

Crowns of Russia

made for

Catherine II , en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes , house = , father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst , mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp , birth_date = , birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anha ...

, 1762

Jewellery

The Daffodil BouquetThe Blue Fountain

Nuggets

*"The Great Triangle", gold, 36.2 kg (mined in 1842 in

Miass Miass ( rus, Миа́сс, p=mʲɪˈas) is a city in Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia, located west of Chelyabinsk, on the eastern slope of the Southern Ural Mountains, on the bank of the river Miass. Population: Name The name Miass is taken from ...

) *"The Camel", gold, 9.28 kg *"Mephisto", gold, 20.25 g (mined in 1944 in

Kolyma Kolyma (russian: Колыма́, ) is a region located in the Russian Far East. It is bounded to the north by the East Siberian Sea and the Arctic Ocean, and by the Sea of Okhotsk to the south. The region gets its name from the Kolyma River an ...

)

Public access

The Diamond Fund is exhibited in the Kremlin Armoury building. For visitors, it is accessible only through tours of fixed duration due to the limited space inside the Fund. Tours in Russian are organized daily, at twenty-minute intervals. Foreign visitors can receive an audioguide in English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Chinese or Japanese.

References

External links

Official website of the Diamond FundInformation for visitors
from the Alexander Palace website
{{Authority control Russian monarchy Museums in Moscow Moscow Kremlin Jewellery museums Diamond museums Diamond industry in the Soviet Union *