Is the Hope Diamond Really Cursed? The True Story

The Hope Diamond: a 45.52-carat blue diamond that glows red under ultraviolet light, and the most famous "cursed" gem in the world. Is it really cursed? We follow the documented chain of owners, from Jean-Baptiste Tavernier and India to Louis XIV's French Blue, the 1792 theft of the French crown jewels, the Hope family in London, Pierre Cartier and Evalyn Walsh McLean, and Harry Winston mailing it to the Smithsonian in 1958. Then we trace how the curse was put together in newspapers between 1908 and 1911, and why it stuck. Part of our October "spooky but true" series. Next: The Pied Piper Was Real. Subscribe for more. 0:00 A Blue Stone That Glows Red 1:43 The Merchant And The Idol 3:15 The Sun King's Blue 4:36 Five Nights In 1792 5:56 A Blue Diamond In London 7:29 The Newspapers Find A Curse 9:07 Cartier's Story 10:30 What Happened To The McLeans 12:04 By Registered Mail 13:48 Outro Sources: Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History press releases (9 February 2005; 8 January 2008). S. Eaton-Magaña et al., "Using phosphorescence as a fingerprint for the Hope and other blue diamonds", Geology 36 (2008). F. Farges, S. Sucher, H. Horovitz and J.-M. Fourcault, "The French Blue and the Hope", Gems and Gemology (spring 2009). J. Stromberg, "The Hope Diamond Was Once a Symbol for Louis XIV, the Sun King", Smithsonian Magazine (2014). USPS Historian, "Hope Diamond Delivered by Mail" (2002). "What happened the last time the French crown jewels were stolen", National Geographic History. Biodiversity Heritage Library, "From Jean-Baptiste Tavernier to the Smithsonian". B. Dunning, "The Hope Diamond: A Curse Deconstructed", Skeptoid 499. R. Kurin, "Hope Diamond: The Legendary History of a Cursed Gem" (2006). Where Tavernier bought the stone, the year of its recutting and the price paid by the McLeans are given differently in different sources. Images: "Hôtel de la Marine en février 2014" by Lionel Allorge, CC BY-SA 3.0. "Hope Diamond closeup" by Matthew Hurst, CC BY-SA 2.0. Recreated Golden Fleece of Louis XV by François Farges (Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle), CC BY 3.0. All via Wikimedia Commons. Portrait of Henry Philip Hope (Musée Cognacq-Jay, Paris Musées), CC0. The Hope Diamond, 1974 (Smithsonian Institution Archives); Nicolas de Largillière's portrait of Tavernier; Hyacinthe Rigaud's Louis XIV; the Golconda engraving (P. van der Aa, about 1725); May Yohé, 1921; Pierre Cartier, 1926 (Bain News Service); Evalyn Walsh McLean and Edward Beale McLean (Harris and Ewing, Library of Congress); Lord Francis Hope (Bain News Service); and the 1958 mailing wrapper (U.S. Post Office Department) are public domain. Image credits Hôtel de la Marine en février 2014 4.jpg, by Lionel Allorge, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons Portrait en pied de Henry-Philip Hope, J 786.jpg, by After Guy Head / Henry Pierce Bone, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons Toison2010.png, by Francoisfarges, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons Hope Diamond closeup.jpg, by Matthew Hurst from Washington, DC, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons This channel uses a synthetic voice and illustrations made in one house style with AI assistance. The research is real and simplified for a short runtime. #history #hopediamond #halloween