Habsburg family's Florentine diamond found in bank vault after a century
The legendary "Florentine" diamond, a 137-carat yellow pear-shaped jewel belonging to Austro-Hungary's imperial Habsburg family, has resurfaced 100 years after its reported disappearance, with descendants revealing it was hidden in a Canadian bank vault throughout that period under Empress Zita's orders.
The diamond appeared amid the fallout over the daring royal jewel theft at the Louvre in Paris, which has rekindled interest in other famous stolen or missing artefacts.
The Florentine's reappearance has ended decades of rumours, films and novels speculating about the jewel's fate. The gem likely belonged to Florence's Medici family before the Habsburgs, though its origin remains unknown. However, it is speculated that it was made for Charles the Bold, the last Duke of Burgundy.
The diamond vanished when Emperor Charles I fled Vienna in search of asylum abroad sometime around 1918. Some jewellery was known to have been transported to Switzerland for protection, leading to assumptions that the Florentine disappeared during that period.
The descendants of the Habsburgs have now revealed the diamond was never lost, according to reports in US and German outlets. After the imperial family fled Nazi persecution to Canada during World War II, they stored the diamond — which they had been holding all along — with other jewellery in a bank vault.
Only a few people knew of the location, per the wishes of Empress Zita, the widow of Charles I. She disclosed the diamond's whereabouts only to her sons, Robert and Rodolphe, requesting secrecy for security reasons until 100 years after Charles's 1922 death. The brothers passed this information to their own sons before dying, according to family accounts.
Three Habsburg relatives confirmed the story to the New York Times. Now that the centenary vow is fulfilled, descendants including Karl Habsburg-Lothringen, the last emperor's grandson, and cousins Lorenz von Habsburg-Lothringen and Simeon von Habsburg decided the private jewellery should be exhibited.
In gratitude to Canada for sheltering the former monarch's family, the collection will remain there, and the Florentine diamond and other jewellery could be exhibited publicly.
The 137-carat stone is notable for its pear shape with gleaming yellow gold colouring, making it one of history's most significant gems. Its reappearance resolves one of the 20th century's biggest artefact mysteries.
In October, the Louvre made world headlines after thieves used a truck-mounted cherry picker to steal crown jewels from the Apollo gallery.