Hooker Emerald Brooch

The Hooker Emerald Brooch is an emerald brooch designed by Tiffany & Co.. As of 2010, the brooch is on display in the Janet Annenberg Hooker Hall of Geology, Gems, and Minerals at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History in Washington D.C., United States.

The Hooker Emerald Brooch consists of an open-ended circular band of platinum. The two ends of the band curl outwards into scrolls, and are connected by a round brilliant cut diamond. 108 other round brilliant cut diamonds are studded along the band. Spokes cross the band, converging to form the setting for the Hooker Emerald at the centre of the brooch. Ten pairs of baguette-cut diamonds project between the spokes from behind the emerald towards the platinum band. The Hooker Emerald itself weighs 75.47 carats. It measures 27 mm to a side and is remarkably free of inclusions for its size. The gem's cut gives the appearance of a series of concentric squares within the gemstone (known as a beveled square emerald cut.) In total, the brooch contains approximately 13 carats of diamonds.

The Hooker Emerald was extracted from an unidentified mine in Colombia in the 16th or 17th century. The rough emerald was sent to Europe by Spanish conquistadors to be cut and polished, before being sold to the ruling family of the Ottoman Empire. The emerald was made part of the crown jewels of the Empire during the reign of Sultan Abdul Hamid II, the last Ottoman Sultan to rule with absolute power; he wore it mounted into a belt buckle.

...
Wikipedia