'Riveting. This highly readable and entertaining book ... finally sets the record straight on the history of the Koh-i-Noor' Tarquin Hall, Sunday Times 'Dynamic, original and supremely readable' Maya Jasanoff, Guardian The first comprehensive and authoritative history of the Koh-i-Noor, arguably the most celebrated and mythologised jewel in the world. On 29 March 1849, the ten-year-old maharaja of the Punjab was ushered into the magnificent Mirrored Hall at the centre of the great fort in Lahore. There, in a public ceremony, the frightened but dignified child handed over great swathes of the richest country in India in a formal Act of Submission to a private corporation, the East India Company. He was also compelled to hand over to the British monarch, Queen Victoria, perhaps the single most valuable object on the subcontinent: the celebrated Koh-i-Noor diamond. The Mountain of Light. The history of the Koh-i-Noor may have been one woven together from gossip of Delhi bazaars, but it was to become the accepted version. Only now is it finally challenged, freeing the diamond from the fog of mythology that has clung to it for so long. The resulting history is one of greed, murder, torture, colonialism and appropriation told through an impressive slice of south and central Asian history. It ends with the jewel in its current controversial setting: in the crown of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, which was deemed too contentious to be used by Camilla, the Queen Consort, in King Charles's coronation. Masterly, powerful and erudite, this is history at its most compelling and invigorating.

This riveting tale of the Kohinoor, the worldÕs most coveted gem, unearths fascinating new information as it moves from the Mughal court to Persia to Afghanistan; from Maharaja Ranjit Singh's durbar in Punjab to the Queen of England's Crown. A thrilling tale, full of violence, drama and intrigue.

This volume recounts the search for the body of John Paul Jones in the abandoned St. Louis Cemetery of Paris (Jones was buried on July 20, 1792 in Paris). There is a wealth of documentary and historical material relating to Jones' career, but surely the most fascinating part of this book has to do with the rediscovery, examination and removal of Jones' long-dead body in 1905. The remains were indeed well-preserved after 113 years and were subject to the indignity of examination, autopsy and publication. This book includes a full-page bust view of the well-preserved Jones. The entire affair reads like a mystery, and we are treated to some creepy photos as well. The book opens with an address by President Theodore Roosevelt, and contains addresses delivered at the U. S. Naval Academy, April 24, 1906. "The 24th of April, 1906, was chosen for the commemorative exercises in honor John Paul Jones because it was the anniversary of Jones's famous capture of the British ship of war Drake, off Carrickfergus in 1778. Jones carried the war to the shores of Britain, actually landing in Scotland in an attempt to capture the Earl of Selkirk; this episode resulted in his reputation as a pirate in Britain. Important material first published here on John Paul Jones including letters and illustrations showing the character and personal appearance of Jones.