Shlomo Moussaieff (businessman)
| Shlomo Moussaieff | |
|---|---|
| Native name | Hebrew: שלמה מוסאיוף |
| Born | 1925 Jerusalem, Mandatory Palestine |
| Died | July 1, 2015 (aged 90) |
| Resting place | Jerusalem, Israel |
| Residence | London |
| Occupation | Jewelry merchant |
| Years active | 1950s–2015 |
| Organization | Moussaieff Jewellery Ltd. |
| Known for | Dealer in exclusive diamonds and gemstones Biblical antiquities collector |
| Spouse(s) | Alisa |
| Children |
Dorrit Tamara Sharon |
| Parent(s) | Rehavia Moussaieff |
| Relatives | Shlomo Moussaieff, grandfather |
| Website | www.moussaieff.co.uk |
Shlomo Moussaieff (1925 – July 1, 2015) was an Israeli multimillionaire of Bukharan Jewish descent who lived in London from 1963 until his death. Founder of Moussaieff Jewellers Ltd., he and his wife and business partner, Alisa, were ranked No. 315 on the Sunday Times Rich List 2011, with a fortune estimated at £220 million (US$352.6 million). Moussaieff made most of his fortune selling precious jewellery to international royalty and high society, especially Arabs from Saudi Arabia and Persian Gulf states. He spoke Arabic fluently. In addition, Moussaieff was regarded as one of the world's top private collectors of antiquities associated with the Bible and ancient Near East, with a collection of 60,000 artefacts.
Shlomo Moussaieff was the second of 12 children of Rehavia Moussaieff, a Jerusalem-born jewellery dealer. He was named after his grandfather, Shlomo Moussaieff, a wealthy Bukharan merchant who was one of the founders of the Bukharim neighbourhood in Jerusalem in 1891. Rehavia, who later traded in fine gems in Paris, introduced Shlomo to the jewellery trade at a young age. Shlomo's youngest brother, Alon, also became a Jerusalem jewellery dealer. Several of his sisters own jewellery stores: Hannah in Jerusalem's King David Hotel, Naomi in London and Aviva in Geneva.
His father, a strict disciplinarian, threw him out of the house at the age of 12 because he refused to apply himself to his studies. Moussaieff claims he had dyslexia and was unable to read and write. He began sleeping in synagogues, buses, and even the street, and worked for a carpenter in Sanhedria. After hours, he hung around the Second Temple-era Tombs of the Sanhedrin in the nearby park. Inside the caves, which were then open to the public, he discovered ancient coins that he sold to traders. He also carved up lead coffins and sold the lead in the Armenian Quarter. Apprehended and beaten by an Arab policeman, he was brought before an Arab judge and sentenced to nine months in a reform school in Tulkarm. He asked to learn in a madrassa, where he found it easy to learn the Koran by heart, and became familiar with Arab culture.
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