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{{Short description|Historical Precious Gemstone (Ruby)}}
[[File:Detail of the Timur ruby from a painting of Maharaja Sher Singh, by August Schoefft, ca.1841–42.jpg|thumb|Detail of the Timur Ruby from a painting of [[Sher Singh|Maharaja Sher Singh]] of the [[Sikh Empire]], by [[August Schoefft]], {{circa}} 1841–42]]
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
The '''Timur Ruby''' (also ''Khiraj-i-alam'', "Tribute to the World") is an [[unfaceted]], {{convert|352.54|carat|g|adj=on|0}} polished red [[spinel]] set in a necklace.<ref name="O’Donoghue">{{Cite book|last=O’Donoghue|first=Michael|url=http://worldcat.org/title/62088437|title=Gems: Their sources, descriptions and identification|date=2006|publisher=Butterworth-Heinemann|edition=6|pages=173|isbn=9780750658560|oclc=62088437}}</ref> It is named after the ruler [[Timur]],<ref name="Morgan">Morgan, Diane (2008). ''Fire and Blood: Rubies in Myth, Magic, and History.'' Greenwood Publishing Group, {{ISBN|9780275993047}}</ref> founder of the [[Timurid Empire]] and purportedly one of its former owners. It was believed to be a [[ruby]] until 1851.

It is inscribed with the titles of five of its previous owners: [[Jahangir]] (who also had the name of his father [[Akbar the Great]] inscribed), [[Shah Jahan]], [[Farrukhsiyar]], [[Nader Shah]] and [[Ahmad Shah Durrani]].<ref name="Ball">Ball V. (1894). [https://www.jstor.org/stable/20490467 A Description of Two Large Spinel Rubies, with Persian Characters Engraved upon Them.] ''[[Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy]]'' Vol. 3, (1893–1896), pp. 380–400</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Nahar Singh, Kirapāla Siṅgha|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/581527382|title=History of Koh-i-Noor, Darya-i-Noor, and Taimur's ruby|date=1985|publisher=Atlantic Publishers & Distributors|pages=119|oclc=581527382}}</ref>

Since 1612, the owners of the Timur Ruby have also owned the [[Koh-i-Noor]] diamond. It has been in the possessions of the [[Safavid Iran|Safavid]], [[Mughal Empire|Mughal]], [[Sikh Empire|Sikh]] and [[British Empire|British]] empires, and is currently part of the [[Royal Collection]].

== History ==

=== Origins ===
Spinels are found in various parts of the world, including the [[Transoxiana]] region that was home to the Mughal ancestors.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Bycroft, Michael Dupré, Sven|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/1113685767|title=Gems in the early modern world materials, knowledge and global trade, 1450-1800|date=2019|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=978-3-319-96378-5|pages=276|oclc=1113685767}}</ref>

The Timur Ruby is historically associated with Timur, who was believed to have taken the gem during the invasion of Delhi in 1398.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|last=Miller, Judith|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/961802088|title=Jewel : a celebration of Earth's treasures|publisher=Dorling Kindersley Ltd|year=2016|isbn=978-0-241-22603-2|pages=79|oclc=961802088}}</ref> In 1996, however, research indicated that it was never owned by Timur.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Brown, Kerry|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/817916204|title=Sikh Art and Literature.|date=2012|publisher=Taylor and Francis|isbn=978-0-203-06137-4|pages=86|oclc=817916204}}</ref>

=== Possession of the Mughal emperors ===
During the seventeenth century, the gem was in the ownership of [[Abbas the Great|Shah Abbas I]], the Safavid Emperor of Persia. In 1612, he gave it to the Mughal Emperor [[Jahangir]].<ref name=":1" /> Jahangir had it engraved with his own name and that of his father ([[Akbar|Akbar the Great]]).

The stone passed to subsequent Mughal Emperors, including [[Shah Jahan]] (who had it set in the [[Peacock Throne]]) and [[Peacock Throne|Aurangzeb]].<ref name=":0" /> Shah Jahan and [[Farrukhsiyar]] also inscribed their names on the stone.<ref name=":0" />

=== Removal from India ===
In 1739, Persian ruler [[Nader Shah]] seized the gem during his occupation of Delhi. Nader took the Peacock Throne as part of his treasure, but removed the Timur Ruby and the Koh-i-Noor diamond to wear on an armband.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Boissoneault|first=Lorraine|date=30 August 2017|title=The True Story of the Koh-i-Noor Diamond—And Why the British Won't Give It Back|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/true-story-koh-i-noor-diamondand-why-british-wont-give-it-back-180964660/|website=Smithsonian Magazine}}</ref> He called the Timur ruby the "Ayn al-Hur" ("Eye of the Houri), and added to its inscription.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Dalrymple|first=William|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/1083188224|title=Koh-i-Noor : the history of the world's most infamous diamond|date=February 2019 |publisher=ISIS Large Print Books |isbn=978-1-78541-491-6|oclc=1083188224}}</ref>

In 1747, Nader Shah was assassinated. The Timur Ruby was taken by his commander [[Ahmad Shah Durrani]], who became King of Afghanistan.<ref name=":1" />

=== Return to the Punjab ===
In 1810, it returned to India when Ahmad Shah's grandson [[Shah Shujah Durrani|Shah Shujah]] was forced into exile in the Punjab. In 1813, Maharaja [[Ranjit Singh]] took possession of the gem. It subsequently passed into the ownership of Maharaja [[Sher Singh]] (1841) and Maharaja [[Duleep Singh]].

=== Removal to London ===
When the [[East India Company]] invaded [[Punjab]] in 1849, they took possession of the Timur Ruby and the [[Koh-i-Noor]] diamond from [[Duleep Singh]].

In 1851, the Timur Ruby was displayed at the [[Great Exhibition]] in London.<ref name=":0" /> That year, it was also reclassified as a spinel rather than a ruby. After the Great Exhibition closed the Court of Directors of the East India Company presented the gem to [[Queen Victoria]] as a gift after which it became her private possession.<ref name=":0" />

The gem was set in a necklace by [[Garrard & Co|Garrards]] in 1853.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book|last=Hegewald, Julia A. B.|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/1058410398|title=Re-use-The Art and Politics of Integration and Anxiety : the Art and Politics of Integration and Anxiety.|date=2012|publisher=SAGE India|isbn=978-81-321-0981-5|oclc=1058410398}}</ref> Shortly afterwards, it was modified so that it could hold the Koh-i-Noor as an occasional alternative.<ref name=":2" />

After the necklace was lengthened in 1911, it was rarely worn.

The spinel is now part of the [[Royal Collection]].

==See also==
* [[List of individual gemstones]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/eGallery/object.asp?object=100017&row=0&detail=about The 'Timur Ruby' necklace] at the [[Royal Collection]]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Timur ruby}}
[[Category:Individual necklaces]]
[[Category:British East India Company]]
[[Category:Sikh Empire]]
[[Category:Jewels of the Mughal Empire]]
[[Category:Individual spinels]]
[[Category:Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Indian artefacts held abroad]]

Timur Ruby - Revision history

Harryson3545: Post