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Jewelley, from Russia with love

The famous Kremlin in Moscow houses an unparalleled collection of Russian jewellery, known as the Diamond Fund. The collection is now kept in the Armoury building but originates in the Royal Treasury created in 1719 by Emperor Peter I of Russia, which he stored in the Winter Palace in St Petersburg. It comprises a large number of gemstones, pieces of jewellery and natural gold nuggets.

A Great legacy

Peter I – also known as Peter the Great – was Russia’s Tsar from 1672 until his death in 1725. He was famous for his modernising and expansionist policy, which turned Russia into an empire and a major European power. The vast majority of the Diamond Fund was established by Peter himself and his immediate successors, a reflection of the nation’s prosperity and success during the 55 years of his reign and the following period.

Although later rulers did add to the collection, they did so in relatively small quantities. One study, carried out in the 1920s, indicates that 85 percent of the Fund originates in the period up to 1855 (from Peter’s reign to that of Nicholas I). The last emperors – Alexander II, Alexander III, Nicholas II and the disputed emperor Mikhail II, who only reigned for part of 1917 before the Revolution – account for just 15 percent of the total. The Fund is a small subset of the much larger State Fund of Precious Stones.

Exhibits

The Fund was moved to Moscow from St Petersburg at the onset of the First World War in an effort to keep it safe. The collection was not displayed in public until 1967. Originally conceived as a temporary exhibition, it was made a permanent fixture the next year due in part to its enormous popularity.

The Fund includes a number of pieces of royal regalia. These include the Crown of Monomakh, the first crown to be used in Russia by the Princes of Moscow, which probably dates to the 13th or 14th century. It also houses the Imperial Crown of Russia, worn by Catherine the Great and the rulers who followed her.

One of the most impressive pieces is the Imperial Sceptre – also from Catherine’s time – which holds the Orlov Diamond, a huge, 189-carat stone. The Fund also holds a number of pieces of bespoke jewellery such as the Shah Diamond (an extremely clear 89-carat stone), a 260-carat sapphire, and numerous Fabergé eggs.