India wants UK to return Kohinoor, Buddha

[Neo]

India wants UK to return Kohinoor, Buddha

LONDON: The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has joined an international network for the return of priceless artifacts taken away during British rule, including the Kohinoor diamond and the Sultanganj Buddha.

ASI Director-General Gautam Sengupta said, the list of India’s treasures held abroad was “too long to handle” and there was need for a “diplomatic and legal campaign” for their restitution from institutions, including the British Museum, the Royal Collection and the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery.

Speaking to The Independent, Sengupta said that after decades of unsuccessful unilateral lobbying, India was looking to join a campaign with the support of UNESCO, and other countries with longstanding complaints about the foreign ownership of their artistic riches, including Egypt and Greece.

“As efforts so far to reclaim stolen treasures have proved futile, UNESCO support is required for launching an international campaign to achieve this end,” she said.

“Not only India, various other countries like Mexico, Peru, China, Bolivia, Cyprus and Guatemala also voiced the same concern to get back their stolen and looted antiquities and to join the international campaign,” Sengupta said. While underlining the need to be “realistic” about the chances of large numbers of items being returned, she told the newspaper that a list of “unique items” that should be returned to their home countries was being drawn up by each of the participating countries.

Rita McLean, head of the Birmingham Museum, said, “We have not received any official request for the return of the Sultanganj Buddha. Any requests for restitution will be treated on a case-by-case basis.”

According to the newspaper report, the British Museum said it was satisfied that the objects highlighted by the Indian authorities had been acquired legitimately. courtesy the times of india

Daily Times - Leading News Resource of Pakistan

[Zaki]

Last time i checked Kohi-e-Noor was in The Tower of London. They have a castle called "The Jewel House" and Kohinoor is set in the crown of The Queen Elizabeth (late) along with another 2200 expensive Gems and Diamonds.

It has become a matter of pride for The Royal Family and they will never agree to give Kohinoor from its late queen's crown. This is just a news with no effect whatsoever

[Neo]

Indeed, UK will never return the Kohinoor. If she does, other countries will be lined up to demand their stolen goods.

[Lady Macbeth]

Technically speaking ...doesnt the kohinoor belong to us??? So if in case the UK is generous enough to return it shouldnt it be returned to Pakistan???

[Neo]

Why Pakistan?

[Lady Macbeth]

Originally Posted by Neo

Why Pakistan?

Didnt it belong to the moguls?

Why accept the belongings/hand-me-downs of marauding barbarians?

[Neo]

But two out of three Mughal capitals are in India, I don't think we have a valid claim.

[Zaki]

Originally Posted by Lady Macbeth

Didnt it belong to the moguls?

Why accept the belongings/hand-me-downs of marauding barbarians?

Well Kohinoor belonged travelled more countries than myself. Before the British, Sikh Maharaja had this diamond, before him were the Mughals and before him were the Hindus. It once upon a time travelled to Persia and its roots goes back to thousands of years where Krishna (Hindu's lord) fought a war for the sake of Diamond to restore his pride and that is considered to be the same Kohinoor

In reality Kohinoor must remain to its current owners "Britian" and if there can be any third owner that has to be India

[Neo]

Description of the Kohinoor Diamond
The Kohinoor Diamond is one of the most famous diamonds in the world. The Kohinoor diamond was first mentioned in 1306 when it was taken from a Rajah of Malwa, whose family had held the diamond for centuries. It was described as weighing 186 carats and was an oval cut white diamond - the shape and size of a small hen's egg. The Kohinoor diamond belonged to various Indian and Persian rulers but it became part of the Crown Jewels of England at the time that Queen Victoria was proclaimed empress of India. The Kohinoor was re-cut at this time and now weighs 108.93 carats and is kept in the Tower of London.

Origin / Meaning of the name Kohinoor Diamond
The Kohinoor (Koh-i-Noor) originated from India in Golconda at the Kollur mine and was specifically mined from the *Rayalaseema diamond mine (meaning *Land of Stones) during the rule of the Kakatiya dynasty. The Kohinoor was then passed from one ruling dynasty to the next. The original name of the diamond was ‘Samantik Mani’ (Prince and leader among diamonds). In 1739 Nadir Shah, the King of Persia, invaded India and was said to refer to the diamond as the "Mountain of Light". The Persian-Arabic words for "Mountain of Light" were Koh-i-Noor. The magnificence of the diamond and its value symbolized the power of an Empire. It was said that "He who owns this diamond will own the world, but will also know all its misfortunes." Possession of the Kohinoor led to murder, torture, mutilation and treachery and stories of the Curse of the Kohinoor Diamond...

The Curse of the Kohinoor Diamond
The Curse of Kohinoor Diamond dates back to a Hindu text from the time of the first authenticated appearance of the diamond in 1306. The Curse of the Kohinoor Diamond reads:

"He who owns this diamond will own the world, but will also know all
its misfortunes. Only God, or a woman, can wear it with impunity."

The history and lives of the rulers who owned the Koh-i-Noor diamond were filled with violence, murders, mutilations, torture and treachery. Whether or not people believe in the Curse of the Kohinoor Diamond, the history of the stone is undeniable - and the threat of the Koh-i-Noor curse is enough to make people cautious. The British Royal family were obviously aware of the Curse of the Kohinoor and from the reign of Queen Victoria, when the Kohinoor diamond came into their possession, it has always gone to the wife of the male heir to the British throne. The History Timeline details the story of the Kohinoor diamond.

History of the Kohinoor Diamond
Myths and legends surround the stone. It was of incredible value and described by one of its owners, the Emperor Babur, the Great Mogul, as "Worth the value of one day's food for all the people in the world". The men who fought for it, and the Kingdoms and great Empires that were won and lost, produced many stories of ill-luck that plagued the owners and became part of the history of the Kohinoor diamond.

[Neo]

1200 - 1300's:There were many dynasties who owned the Kohinoor diamond including the Slave dynasty (1206-90), the Khilji dynasty (1290-1320), the Tughlaq dynasty (1320-1413), the Sayyid dynasty (1414-51), and the Lodi dynasty (1451-1526)These were all brief reigns ending with war and violence

1306: In 1306 the Rajah of Malwa was forced to give the diamond to the rulers of the Kakatiya Empire

1323: Soon after, in 1323, the Kakatiya Empire fell after a rule stretching from 1083 to 1323. The diamond was taken by Muhammad bin Tughluq who became the Sultan of Delhi from 1325 to 1351

1323 - 1526: The diamond came into the possession of the Delhi Sultanate which consisted of many Muslim dynasties that ruled in India to 1526. During the Delhi Sultanate Muslim armies consisting of Mongol, Turkic, Persian, and Afghan warriors invaded India

1526: In 1526 the Kohinoor Diamond passed to the Mughal Empire when the Timurid Prince Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi, the last of the Delhi Sultans, at the First Battle of Panipat. Mughal is the Persian word for Mongol

Babur mentions in his memoirs, the Baburnama, that the diamond had belonged to an un-named Rajah of Malwa

The Mughal Empire ruled most of the Indian subcontinent for two hundred years and the Kohinoor passed from one Mughal Emperor to the next. Violence and bloodshed followed these years often marked by the sons of the Emperors rebelling and overtaking their fathers

The Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan (1592 – 1666), who was famous for building the Taj Mahal, had the Kohinoor Diamond placed into his ornate Peacock Throne

1639: The Koh-i-Noor changed ownership several more times until the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan took the throne. In 1639 a struggle for the Empire started between his four sons - Dara Shikoh, Shah Shuja, Aurangzeb and Murad Baksh when brother killed brother. Shah Shuja executed his brother Dara Shikoh and in then 1658 Aurangzeb defeated Shuja and Shuja who was tortured to death together with all his family

1665: In 1665 Jean-Baptiste Tavernier (1605 – 1689), French traveller and pioneer of jewelry and diamond trade with India, recorded his experiences in which he describes a great Mughal diamond said to be the biggest in the world. It was called the "Great Mogul" by Tavernier

1739: In 1739 the Persian King Nadir Shah invaded the Mughal Empire defeating their Emperor and stole the great Koh-i-Noor diamond (Nadir Shah is credited with giving the diamond the name it is known by today). The Koh-i-Noor Diamond was taken to Persia

1747: In 1747 the empire of Nadir Shah quickly disintegrated after he was assassinated - the Curse of the Kohinoor strikes again? After Nadir Shah's assassination, the diamond passed to his successors, each were dethroned and ritually blinded (Blinding was used to render an enemy powerless and make him a burden on his community.)

1800: 1800 - Ranjit Singh took the Empire and possession of the Kohinoor diamond. Rajah Ranjit Singh died in 1839 and his successors lacked his bravery and vision

The Sikh kingdom became weak and the British conquered India which became part of the British Empire and the British Raj or rule gained control of India from 1858 - 1947

The British Governor-General of India, Lord Dalhousie, was responsible for the British acquiring the Koh-i-Noor

1851: 1851 - Dalhousie arranged that the Kohinoor diamond should be presented by Ranjit Singh's successor, Duleep Singh, to Queen Victoria, the Empress of India

1851: 1851 - The Great Exhibition was staged in Hyde Park in London when the Koh-i-Noor was put on view by the British public

1852: In 1852 Prince Albert ordered that the Koh-i-Noor diamond to be re-cut from 186 carats to its current 105 carats thus increasing its brilliance. The Koh-i-Noor diamond was mounted in a tiara with more than two thousand other diamonds

The Koh-i-Noor diamond was then used as the centre piece of the crowns of the Queen consorts to the British Kings. The Queen Consorts Queen Alexandra and Queen Mary wore the crowns

1936: In 1936, the stone was set into the crown of the wife of King George VI, Queen Elizabeth (later known as the Queen Mother), wife of King George VI

The British Royal family were obviously aware of the Curse of the Kohinoor - "He who owns this diamond will own the world, but will also know all its misfortunes. Only God, or a woman, can wear it with impunity." And from the reign of Queen Victoria the Kohinoor diamond has always gone to the wife of the male heir to the British throne