The Source Book On Sikhism

The History of Koh-i-Noor

This wonder diamond of India had a chequered history running into thousands of years. Legend has it that the first important possessor of this great diamond was Lord Krishna. He not only got the diamond as a dowry but also got the hand of Jamavant’s daughter who was renowned for her beauty and charm of manners, in marriage. Lord Krishna did not deem it fit to keep it with him and gave it back to sun-god who in turn bestowed it on Raja Karna, whose crown the diamond adorned. In the great war between Kauravas and Pandwas fought on the plains of Kurukshetra, Karna, who was the commander-in-chief of Kauravas was killed by Arjuna and the diamond passed into the Arjuna’s possession. After the war, when Raja Yudhestra was crowned, Arjuna presented the diamond to him as a token of his affection. We have no record of the career of this precious stone since the age of Mahabharata down to the time of Asoka the Great, in the third century B.C. We find the stone with Raja Samprati, a grandson of Asoka.