You can walk for weeks in the Washington Museum, just like in the Louvre and the Hermitage. I didn't have time, so I went to see what I liked most - precious stones.
At the entrance there were three healthy guards with weapons, and when I asked one of them where the diamonds were, he pointed his finger up. The sign "Diamonds" hung directly above his head. And I went inside.
Half-light, and only the stones are illuminated. It was an amazing sight.
Of course, I wanted to see the blue Hope diamond, which, according to legend, brought a curse and death to each of its owners. Remember Stevenson's "Prince Florizel"? This diamond is really blue, the size of half walnut. Link to Wikipedia.
Its last owner simply wrapped it in brown paper and sent it as a gift to the museum. Since then the curse has disappeared.
I don’t believe in this, it’s just that the legend describes that all the owners of this stone went bankrupt and died suddenly from rare diseases.
There are many more beautiful ones under the cut precious stones from the unique collection of the Smithsonian Institution.
It was difficult to photograph, everything was in semi-darkness. There is a hand in the background for scale. 
And this is Don Pedro - one of the most famous gems in the world.
The Don Pedro aquamarine was discovered in Brazil in 1980. Aquamarine was named after two 19th century Brazilian emperors, Don Pedro I and his son Don Pedro II. The original stone - the so-called beryl crystal - according to one version, weighed about 27 kg (and according to another, the weight of the beryl crystal reached as much as 45 kg). In 2011, the Don Pedro aquamarine was donated to the Smithsonian Institution by Florida businessmen Jeffrey Bland and Jane Mitchell. () 
The American Golden Topaz currently holds the record as the largest processed yellow topaz in the world. Moreover, it is one of the largest faceted gemstones of any kind. Its size is 22892 carats (4.5785 kilograms). It has 172 facets (flat cuts that are made on gemstones to help them reflect light). This gem was cut from a piece of yellow topaz that weighed 11.8 kilograms. The rough stone was discovered in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. Leon Agee spent two years processing it. In 1988, the American Golden Topaz was donated to the Smithsonian Institution and put on display at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC. The price of this gem remains unknown. ()
In my opinion, the size of a melon. 
There are several assumptions about the origin of the name topaz. The most common of them says that the stone is named after the small island of Topazos in the Red Sea (now St. John's), where sailors found beautiful gems. According to other assumptions, the word topaz comes from the Sanskrit word “tapas” - heat, fire.
The famous "Imperial Topazes" (50.4 kg and 31.8 kg) are Brazilian topazes that were discovered in the Ouro Preto region of Minas Gerais, Brazil, and are currently housed in the American Museum of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington. (from here) 
The world's largest faceted colorless topaz "Brazilian Princess" weighing 22,000 carats. 
Crystal ball. 
Diamonds by Cartier, Pearson.
The 16.72-carat, round brilliant-cut colorless Pearson Diamond (pictured right) is renowned for its flawless clarity. The Pearson Diamond is one of the most famous colorless diamonds in the world. 
Emerald brooch from Tiffany.
108 other round diamonds are dotted along the platinum band. In total, the brooch contains about 13 carats of diamonds. The emerald weighs 75.47 carats, measures 27mm on a side and is surprisingly free of inclusions for its size.(from here) 
The Logan Sapphire is a flawless example from Sri Lanka that has a rich deep blue color and is the second largest known (blue) sapphire, weighing 422.99 carats (84.6 g).
The Logan Sapphire is named for Mrs. John Logan, who donated the gemstone to the Smithsonian Institution in 1960. (Vicki)
The Logan Sapphire is surrounded by 20 round diamonds weighing a total of 16 carats (3.2 g). It is currently on display at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC, along with the Bismarck sapphire necklace and the Hall sapphire necklace. 
These famous diamond earrings belonged to the infamous Queen of France, Marie Antoinette.
Their first owner was Marie Antoinette. Unfortunately, there are no portraits of the queen in these earrings. Although some sources call these earrings the favorite earrings of the French queen.
In order to make such an expensive purchase, Marie Antoinette resorted to a loan and partially repaid the debt with the jewelry that she brought with her from Vienna. Marie Antoinette took these earrings, as well as pearls, with her during her attempt to escape from France.
Before becoming a museum exhibit, these earrings became the property of one of the richest families in Russia - the Yusupov princes. They were bought by Princess Tatyana Yusupova. These earrings, unlike other jewelry, the Yusupovs managed to export abroad.
The earrings were sold to the Cartier jewelry house in 1928. Princess Zinaida Yusupova and her son Felix managed to convince Pierre Cartier that during the entire time that the earrings were in the Yusupov family, they had not undergone any changes.
But already in October of the same 1928, the famous collector bought earrings jewelry Marjorie Merriweather. Mrs. Merryweather treated all her jewelry with great care. In 1959, at her request, Harry Winston changed the silver frame of his earrings to platinum.
In her old age, Mrs. Merryweather decided to give these earrings to her daughter Eleanor, Mrs. Barzin. But she insisted that her mother donate these earrings to the National Museum of Natural History of the Smithsonian Institution (Washington, USA). Along with the earrings, the original silver frame also came to the museum.
These earrings are unique: two large pear-shaped diamonds weigh 14.25 and 20.34 carats. Diamonds came to France in the 18th century, probably from India or Brazil. (from here) 
This is only a small part of what I saw at the Smithsonian Institution. I also bought myself a box of stones there, and next to each stone it was written what kind of stone it was. Now I can definitely distinguish an agate from a tiger's eye.
Every self-respecting private or state museum of natural history has its own mineralogical collection and constantly strives to replenish the exhibition with new unusual specimens. This is not surprising, because the mesmerizing beauty, mysterious shimmer and amazing forms of natural gems leave no one indifferent, thereby providing the museum’s halls with a constant flow of enthusiastic visitors.
Do you want to know where the most complete and interesting meetings one of a kind stones? We will help you take a fascinating tour of the world's major mineralogical collections without leaving the comfort of your chair.
National Museum of Paris
The mineralogical collection of the French Museum of Natural History was collected over three centuries and currently contains about 600 thousand exhibits. These include several thousand cut gems, precious stones, religious relics, works of art and household items from past eras, inlaid with natural crystals.The opening of the Gallery of Mineralogy took place in 1745. It was then that the first exhibition of rare stones, which began in 1625, was presented to the attention of the general public. In the 19th century, thanks to scientific expeditions of French naturalists, the collection was replenished with a large number of valuable specimens of minerals from the most different corners globe.
In the halls and storerooms of the Museum there are original samples that could rightfully become the pride of any exhibition. For example, in the main hall of the Gallery, an incomparable quartz crystal weighing about 16 tons is exhibited. This “baby” is part of a collection of giant stones, which includes pieces of rock crystal, topaz, amazonite, aquamarine and other stones of enormous size and perfect natural shape.
A separate hall of the Gallery is dedicated to familiarization with luminescent minerals - opals, fluorites, calcites, sodalites and others. Crystals shimmer spectacularly in specially designed niches with ultraviolet illumination, literally mesmerizing visitors with their magical radiance.
And in the second wing there is an equally impressive collection of stones from all over the world, distinguished by their purity, parameters or exceptional color. There is large malachite from Zaire, sky lapis lazuli from France, yellow topazes from Brazil, bright blue aquamarines from Pakistan and other natural wonders.
I would like to note that the stones exhibited in the Museum, for the most part, have not been subjected to additional processing and are in the form in which they were extracted from the bowels of the Earth.
Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
The Smithsonian Museum of the United States is the world's largest exhibition complex, which includes 19 museums and galleries, Zoological and Botanical parks and about a dozen research organizations.The Geology Hall, which is located at the Natural History Museum in Washington, DC, displays more than 370,000 minerals. A considerable part of the precious and semi-precious samples that make up the exhibition were received as gifts by the Museum from various private collectors.
In addition to the variety of cut stones and rare crystals,
The Smithsonian collection delights visitors with a permanent exhibition of family jewelry of French monarchs - exquisite sets of royalty, which include the stunningly beautiful tiara of Napoleon's bride, decorated with Persian turquoise.
A real decoration of the Museum and a natural nugget unsurpassed in its external characteristics is an aquamarine called “Don Pedro”, found in Brazil in 1980. This is the world's largest cut gem - a variety of beryl, weighing as much as 2 kg.
Also in the halls of the Museum, tourists can see the largest yellow topaz (about 4.5 kg), a rock crystal ball, beautiful malachite from the Congo, unprocessed pure fluorite from New Hampshire, various types quartz crystals, striking with their unusual shape, and a huge number of other unique minerals.
It must be said that not all mineralogical exhibits are included in the permanent exhibitions of the most extensive Museum of America. A separate wing is reserved for storing samples that are not publicly displayed.
The stones contained in it are intended to carry out research work and detailed study of the various properties of rocks.
So, in addition to educational, the Smithsonian Center also performs an important scientific and research function.
Mineralogical Museum named after. A.E.Fersman RAS
Museum at the Russian Academy of Sciences named after. A.E. Fersman is the most important in Russia and one of the oldest European Mineralogy Centers. The beginning of his collection was laid back in 1716 by Peter the Great - then the future Museum was simply a separate office at the Kunstkamera recently established by the Tsar.Over time, with the active participation of numerous geographical expeditions of Russian scientific travelers, the collection began to grow rapidly, replenished with rare specimens of stones collected in various regions of Russia and other countries of the world. In this regard, the need for a separate organization became apparent, and in 1836 a decision was made to establish the Mineralogical Museum at the Academy of Sciences.
Almost a hundred years later, in 1934, all items in the collection were redirected to Moscow. Since then, the Museum has been welcoming its visitors to a magnificent monument of architecture and history - the estate of Count A. Orlov, where in a huge exhibition hall, storage and exchange fund there are, in total, more than 120 thousand different minerals.
The most extensive examples in the collection are chalcedony, quartz, beryl, aquamarine, garnet and tourmaline. Almost all of these are cut stones, but there are also beautiful pieces dating from the 18th century to the present.
The visiting card and the most ancient exhibit of the Museum is the obelisk, lined with jasper plates. According to the surviving data, this work was completed no later than 1725, that is, back in the time of Peter the Great.
No less interesting and original are the works of Russian stone carvers different years- crafts made from jasper from the famous Kolyvan polishing factory (Altai) and other imperial lapidary factories (Ekaterinburg and Peterhof). These are amazingly beautiful vases, boxes, ashtrays, figurines and other creations made of rock crystal, jade, agate, chalcedony and other gems.
The collection also contains masterpieces from the famous Faberge firm, elegant jewelry and works of art from malachite, amber, lapis lazuli and other minerals, created by the hands of talented craftsmen ancient China, Persia, Italy and Germany.
The museum holds permanent and visiting exhibitions, where everyone can admire beautiful examples of decorative and precious stones, as well as original products made from them.
Collecting minerals is not only a fascinating process, but also a way to understand the history of our Planet, to touch the mysterious power of a stone, the age of which far exceeds human life. That is why mineralogical halls are a mandatory attribute of every natural history museum, and collections of various types of gems are a real treasure, which tens of thousands of people come to admire every year.
When traveling around the world or simply finding yourself on a trip to another city in your homeland, be sure to visit such exhibitions. Believe me, you are guaranteed to get a lot of pleasure from the opportunity to admire the miraculous beauty and perfection of crystals, these beautiful and mysterious gifts of Nature.
The world's best collection precious stones presented at the Smithsonian National Museum in Washington. There is a priceless collection of cut stones, magnificent crystals and various minerals. Of course, the best example of the collection can rightfully be considered, shrouded in various secrets, the fatal « diamond "Hope" « . Many donations have been made to the museum's foundation, started by Harry Winston in 1958 by sending a simple package wrapped in plain paper.
Hooker Emerald
was donated to the museum by Janet Annenberg Hooker. According to legend, this stone adorned the belt buckle of the eastern ruler in the 19th century. The stunningly colored 75-carat stone is now set with diamonds and is a luxurious brooch. For the first time, the craftsmen of the Tiffany company worked on it, this was before the First World War. Miss Hooker bought it in 1955 at a sale. White elephant" - the first of two sales ever organized by Tiffany .
Logan's sapphire.
One of the largest sapphires in the world (weighing 423 carats, the size of a goose egg), donated to the museum in 1960 by Rebecca Guggenheim Logan. Its history is not known for certain, but Mrs. Logan claimed that it once belonged to the Indian Maharaja. The crystal blue stone is now framed by twenty transparent diamonds. It is decorated with a brooch.
Thompson Diamonds
donated to the museum's collection in 1990 by Libby Moody Thompson. They were carved from plain stone brown weighing 264 carats. Harry Winston appreciated the potential of this stone when he saw it in its still raw form in Antwerp. It eventually produced three wonderful cognac-colored diamonds, shaped like pearls. Their total weight is 74 carats. They adorned the brooch and earrings.
The Smithsonian collection also includes family royal jewelry from French monarchs. In particular, the jewelry of Empress Marie-Louise, wife of Napoleon, and the jewelry of Queen Marie Antoinette, who was beheaded during the French Revolution.
The necklace, given by the first Emperor Napoleon to his wife Marie-Louise on the occasion of the birth of their son in 1811, is considered to be the most wonderful of all the jewelry that belonged to Napoleon.
This beautiful necklace, after the death of Marie-Louise in 1847, became the property of the royal house of Austria, then it was inherited in the Habsburg dynasty. The necklace consists of 47 diamonds, weighing a total of 275 carats, but looks very light. In 1960, the owner of the necklace became Harry Winston, and then Marjorie Meriwether Post.
In 1810, on the occasion of his wedding, Napoleon gave his bride Marie-Louise a tiara, as evidenced by the Louvre catalogue. This tiara is only part of a series of jewelry that included earrings, a tiara, a necklace, a buckle and a comb. All Parisian jewelry was made by Nito and Sons. The silver tiara is decorated with 79 emeralds and a thousand antique-cut diamonds. This decoration passed on to the royal house of Habsburg after the death of the empress. In 1952, the tiara was sold to a jewelry manufacturer. Van Cleef & Arpel Company, where they replaced emeralds Persian turquoise. This piece is now in the collection of the Smithsonian Museum thanks to a gift from Marjorie Post.
Marie Antoinette's earrings.
Not a single historian can say with complete confidence that these earrings really belonged to Marie Antoinette, but the way they are made and what their cost is, one can assume that this item could really belong to a royal person.
At the beginning of his reign, the French king Louis XVI gave his queen earrings with diamonds in the shape of a peach, mounted on small rosettes, also studded with diamonds. Marie Antoinette was very fond of jewelry and never parted with it and took it with her when the royal family tried to leave France in 1791. According to one version all the jewelry
confiscated when the royal family was arrested; according to others, the jewelry was lost in 1792. According to the chronicles of European auctions of the 19th century, Marie Antoinette owned four pairs of earrings. Prince Yusupov sold one pair to Cartier, who in turn sold them to Marjorie Post and now they can be admired in the Smithsonian Museum.
In early 2018, a pendant necklace created by award-winning jewelry artist Sir Zoltan David joined the permanent collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History.
Wonderful color
The Iris necklace will complement the “Moonstone” collection in the feldspar exhibition. The centerpiece of the decoration is a rare 35.36-carat moonstone. cat's eye"from India. The chain holding the pendant holds 35 rainbow moonstones in a matching shade of blue, weighing a total of 18.2 carats. All stones are framed in patinated blue bronze, adorned with figured platinum inlay and perfectly cut diamonds. On back side pendant engraved:
“By the light of the silver moon, the ocean of life awaits your magical touch.”
Whose hands are they doing?
The Texas jeweler is the only representative of his state whose creation was honored to enter the Smithsonian Museum.
“I am happy that my work has become part of American national culture,” said David. “I remember how, as a young man and just beginning to study jewelry making, I stood in the Smithsonian Museum, admired the high art around me and hoped in my heart that someday my work would end up here. I am honored that my Iris necklace is exhibited in the museum along with jewelry from the best jewelry houses in the world. “I am a small business owner who has truly achieved the American Dream, and I am proud to now be able to show my work to the people of not only my country, but the world.”
High score
In 2016, the Iris necklace received a Spectrum Award from the American Gem Trade Association, and last year it was presented at the AGTA show in Tucson, where curators at the Smithsonian Museum first saw the piece and decided it would become part of their permanent collection.
David founded his Zoltan David Precious Metal Art brand in 1980 and has earned a reputation for creating high quality pieces. jewelry art through the skillful combination of precious stones with metals and the use of innovative techniques. David has received more than two dozen national and international awards, as well as two patents. In 1988, he was given a knighthood in Hungary in honor of his father, Sir Zoltan David I, who is a national hero.
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When preparing blog posts, I often come across mentions of the National Museum of Natural History in Washington. It feels like all the most important stones and gems in the world are collected there. Afterwards, I turned to Google and learned a lot of interesting things about this, truly one of the largest and richest museums in the world. His collection contains 15,000 gems, 350,000 minerals and 300,000 rock specimens! Among the museum’s exhibits are the world-famous Hope Diamond and the “Star of Asia” Sapphire, but, in addition to the popular pieces that crowd the display cases with crowds of tourists, the museum has many other amazing things that are less popular, but no less beautiful and interesting.
I have compiled a list of 10 unusual must-see items from the collection of the Smithsonian Institution (a complex that includes the National Museum of Natural History) and am sharing it with you. Read the post to the end - there will be useful practical information about the museum (working hours, tickets and all things to do).
1. Agate is a stunningly beautiful black and white found in India. One of the best examples of this stone with intricate natural patterns!
2. Garnet comb - in fact, the comb is not actually a garnet, but a special deep red variety of it - pyrope. The richest deposits of pyrope are located in Bohemia (Czech Republic) - this beauty is from there! 
3. Clagett bracelet - platinum, enamel, 626 diamonds, 73 emeralds, 48 sapphires, 20 rubies and 4 citrines in a magnificent bracelet from early 20th century France. An amazing example of my favorite Art Deco! 
4. Ametrine Daibera - a rare variety of ametrine quartz (a combination of amethyst and citrine) from Bolivia weighing 214.15 carats of a very unusual cut that organically emphasizes the beauty of the stone. 
5. Picasso Kunzite Necklace - This work of art was created by Paloma Picasso for the 100th anniversary of Tiffany & Co. jewelry. It is decorated with stunning beauty and size (396.3 carats!) of purple kunzite, a diamond ribbon and 30 magnificent South Sea pearls. 
6. Emerald necklace - 77 cabochon-cut Colombian emeralds weighing a total of 350 carats! The necklace was made in the mid-1960s by jeweler Julius Cohen. 
7. Marie Louise's tiara - a gift from Napoleon to his second wife on their wedding day. Initially, the tiara was decorated with emeralds, which in 1956 were replaced with 79 crystals of Persian turquoise. 
8. Opals - a stunningly beautiful collection of Australian opals. Incredible shine and shine! 
9. Pearl and Peridot Comb - A beautiful combination of freshwater pearls and peridot in a comb created by jeweler Aldo Cipullo, the designer of Cartier's famous Love bracelet. 
10. Wilkinson Diamond Brooch - 71 beautifully colored diamonds in shades ranging from orange to brown, weighing a total of 61.3 carats. Brilliant confirmation that diamonds are good on their own :-) 
So, as for the museum. The museum is located in the US capital Washington at the intersection of 10th Street and Constitution Avenue, open on weekdays - from 7:30 to 16:00 (and until 18 between Memorial Day and Labor Day), on weekends - from 10:00 to 18:00. Entry is absolutely free!
Maybe someone has already been to this wonderful museum? Or perhaps saw another good collection of gems somewhere? Tell us in the comments :)
