The first memory that I had was that of a condom and a basmati brand Koh-i-noor. And for quite some time I believed that, that was what it meant.
Over a period of time I realised that these products were named after the biggest diamond the world has ever seen. Which got busted later when I came to know that there are at least 80 more diamonds which are known to world, and bigger, brighter, better than Kohinoor.
So what makes this diamond such a legend? The most common reason is that the myth which were told around it by the owners of this diamond.
As in case of all the historical things the history of Kohioor is also not very clear, and it does comes in bits and pieces from different sources reliable or otherwise.
This book tries to put all the myths in a sequence which make the book legible but doesn't really guarantee a lot of points where we can't separate facts from fiction.
One thing which this book points out is that Kohinoor was the reason of a lot bloodshed, and it changed many hands before it ended up in London. The value of this stone was also calculated differently by different owners.
But one thing we can be sure of is that most of the people who had it in their possession were not really poor. They owned enormous amount of wealth. So when there are incidents of its theft or fight for its ownership it was not because of the value of it but the status attached to it. They didn't want it because this was valuable but this give them the satisfaction of owning something which other people can never aspire for. It fulfils the ego of ownership, and nothing else.
Worth a read if you're into history otherwise the larger part of Kohinoor's journey can be filled into a well written article.
Over a period of time I realised that these products were named after the biggest diamond the world has ever seen. Which got busted later when I came to know that there are at least 80 more diamonds which are known to world, and bigger, brighter, better than Kohinoor.
So what makes this diamond such a legend? The most common reason is that the myth which were told around it by the owners of this diamond.
As in case of all the historical things the history of Kohioor is also not very clear, and it does comes in bits and pieces from different sources reliable or otherwise.
This book tries to put all the myths in a sequence which make the book legible but doesn't really guarantee a lot of points where we can't separate facts from fiction.
One thing which this book points out is that Kohinoor was the reason of a lot bloodshed, and it changed many hands before it ended up in London. The value of this stone was also calculated differently by different owners.
But one thing we can be sure of is that most of the people who had it in their possession were not really poor. They owned enormous amount of wealth. So when there are incidents of its theft or fight for its ownership it was not because of the value of it but the status attached to it. They didn't want it because this was valuable but this give them the satisfaction of owning something which other people can never aspire for. It fulfils the ego of ownership, and nothing else.
Worth a read if you're into history otherwise the larger part of Kohinoor's journey can be filled into a well written article.
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