Presentation for the Loudoun County Public Library, Cascades Branch, July 15, 2013 detailing the discovery of a 1922 photographic album at the USGS Library in Reston, VA identifying 4 missing pieces of the Russian Crown Jewels.

2. Breaking the News
• December 18, 2012 – USGS Press Release
“Tracking the Story of the Russian Crown Jewels”
– Included a 6:30 minute podcast called “Diamonds and Dusty Pages
– https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=8xPZ7txy-3w
• December 30, 2012 – National Public Radio Weekend Edition
aired a 4:41 radio story called “The Mysterious
Disappearance Of The Russian Crown Jewels”
– http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=
false&id=168219426&m=168292498

3. The Romanov Family
• The Romanov Family was the second and
last imperial dynasty to rule over
Russia, reigning from 1613 until 1917
• Their reign ended with the overthrow of
the monarchy during the February
Revolution of 1917
• In early March, the Provisional
Government placed Czar Nicholas and his
family under house arrest in the Alexander
Palace
• In August 1917 the government evacuated
the Romanovs to Tobolsk in the
Urals, allegedly to protect them from the
rising tide of revolution during the Red
Terror.
Nicholas and Alexandra

4. • After the Bolsheviks came to power
in October 1917, the conditions of
their imprisonment grew stricter and
talk of putting Nicholas on trial
increased.
• The Romanovs were moved during
April and May 1918 to
Yekaterinburg, a militant Bolshevik
stronghold.
• During the early morning of July
16, at approximately
01:30, Nicholas, Alexandra, their
children, their physician, and several
servants were taken into the
basement and killed.
• It is assumed that their jewelry was
confiscated when they were taken
into custody in March 1917
The Romanov Family
Czar Nicholas and
his family prior to
1917.
Anastasia, his youngest daughter

5. The Romanov Jewels
• The Romanov Family amassed a stunning
collection of gems and jewelry during their
300 year reign
• Many of the gems were mined in Russia and
represented some of the most valuable
gemstones known to exist
• The artistry of court jewelers was also
extraordinary including families like Faberge
that made amazing pieces of art for the
family
• Other pieces, like the Shah diamond were
given to the family by foreign rulers to
garner political favor
The Russian imperial regalia
The Shah diamond

6. • Some of the Romanov Jewels were
placed in protective storage at the
outbreak of World War 1 and it is
that cache of jewelry that
comprises today’s Russian Crown
Jewels collection
• The jewelry was stored first in
Petrograd (St. Petersburg) which
was the capital but were
transferred inland to Moscow after
the revolution
• The collection we know today as the Russian Crown Jewels were found in a
warehouse in 1921 and had been presumed lost
• That collection is comprised of the ceremonial regalia as well as some of the
largest and most expensive pieces.
• There is much speculation about what may have happened to the rest of the
Romanov family’s jewelry. There is some speculation that several caskets full of
jewelry were buried in the Gobi Desert on a trip to secure the jewels in China.
Detail of the Russian Crown jewels from Russia’s Treasures
The Russian Crown Jewels

7. The Russian Crown Jewels
• When the jewels were discovered in that
Moscow warehouse, the your Russian
government struggled with what should be
done with them.
• The government considered selling the jewels
to fund public projects as well as using them
as collateral for loans.
• It was ultimately decided that the jewels
would be inventoried, cataloged and
described. A preeminent
mineralogist, Alexander Fersman, was hired
to conduct the inventory
• A member of the Faberge family was taken
from prison to assist with the inventory.
• The team decided, as part of the inventory, to
photograph to jewels. This was the first time
the Romanov jewels had been systematically
photographed.
Painting depicting the
Russian imperial regalia

8. The Photographic Album (1922)
• Consists of a hand-colored title page
(left) that is signed by an artist and
dated “Moscow, 1922”
• A simply bound album with maroon
papers and tissue covers for each of
the photographs
• 59 pages on which are pasted 81
original photographs depicting pieces
of the Romanov jewelry.
• Some oxidation on the photographs but
overall in very good shape.
• The identification of the Romanov jewelry
was evident with the first pictures in the
album clearly being the crown, scepter and
the orb
Binding of the 1922 album
Title page of the 1922 album

9. The Photographic Album (1922)
“Russian
Diamond
Fund”
“NKF Governmental Repository
of Valuables”“Moscow-1922”Unknown artist’s
signature

10. Russia’s Treasure of Diamonds
and Precious Stones (1925)
• An official publication of the Russian Government, consisting
of 100 plates with accompanying text which inventory the
Romanov jewels. Published in Russian, French, and English.
• In 2007 a copy of this catalog sold on auction for
$141,984(http://www.christies.com/LotFinder/lot_details.aspx?intObjectID=4928114
)
• Some of these jewels were sold by the Soviet government
shortly after this inventory was created. To this day the
locations of many of the jewels are still unknown.
• The USGS staff “rediscovered” a copy in the Kunz collection.
It was complete except for 2 plates: LI and LII*
* - Those plates were later scanned and sent to the USGS for analysis by the Gemological Institute of America Library

11. The Kunz Collection
In the rare book room of the U.S. Geological Survey Library in Reston, VA
resides the personal library of George Frederick Kunz (1856-1932). Kunz was
a preeminent mineralogist and gemologist, an employee of the USGS, and a
prolific writer. His library contains numerous rare and valuable books dating
back to as early as the beginning of the 16th century.
Photos of George Frederick Kunz
working with kunzite which was
discovered by and named after him.
Taken from one of his original
scrapbooks titled “Photographs of
Kunzite”.
G.F. Kunz, inspecting a Kunzite sampleG.F. Kunz

12. Origins of the Album & Catalog
It is unknownhow Kunz came to possess these volumes. No connection has been
found between him and the jewels at the time of assessment or sale. However, we
do know that he saw them personally at an earlier point:
The Winter Palace treasures, the Orlov diamond, the red diamond
of Emperor Paul, the great pearls and other magnificent jewels
were shown to me by the courtesy of the Imperial Chamberlain,
Prince Putjatzin on January 15, 1891, the guard being commanded
by Colonel Gernet. Scarcely six months later the Prince was
bombed to death. (Kunz, 1919)
Kunz’s collection also contains a number of newspaper clippings from the early
1920s regarding the jewels and an auction catalogue from Messrs. Christie, Manson
& Woods (1927) detailing the sale of 124 lots of Russian royal jewelry.

13. • USGS Librarians, upon discovering
the photographic album, began a
systematic process to understand the
importance of this discovery
• We started by comparing the images
in the two volumes and making notes
of what we found
– 22 photos (some cut from larger images)
appear to have been used for prints in
Russia’s Treasure of Diamonds and
Precious Stones.
– 60 of the photos show jewelry depicted in
Russia’s Treasures from different angles.
– 4 photos show jewelry not included in
Russia’s Treasures.
• We then pursued documentation
about the album and how Mr. Kunz
came own the album
• We found documentation at the
American Museum of Natural History
the proved his ownership as early as
October 1922
Conducting the Research
Photographs showing images from
the album and the book

14. Photograph quality and image cleaning
Note the discoloration on the
background of the unaltered
photograph.
After scanning the raw images
with a PS7000C MKII scanner at
400 dpi, Adobe Photoshop was
used to clean and optimize the
images.

15. Examples of identical images
1922 photo 1925 print 1922 photo 1925 print
1922 photo 1925 print

16. Examples of differing images
1925 print
1922 photo

17. Examples of differing images
1922 photo 1925 print

18. Unique Photo 1 – the brooch
1922 photograph
Entry from Selling Russia's Treasures, Nicolas
Iljine, Natalya Semyonova, 2000 Appendix II.

19. Unique Photo 2 – the bracelet
1922 photograph. Appears to be a bracelet. So far no references to it have been identified.

20. Unique Photo 3 – the necklace
1922 photograph. Possibly a necklace. So far no references to it have
been identified.

21. Unique Photo 4 – the diadem
This study done by Nicholas Chevalier possibly
represents the same tiara as one of the jewels worn
by the Tsarevna at the marriage of Prince
Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, and the Grand Duchess
Marie Alexandrovna of Russia in 1874
(Munn, 2001, 287). The design of the central
portion appears identical to the
photograph, although the sketch shows a pearl
frame and solid backing to the tiara.
1922 photograph. This is a sapphire and briolette
diamond kokoshnik-style tiara. No record of it being
sold has been located, nor does it appear to be in
the Russian Diamond Fund.

22. Russian Royal Jewels
Photograph from Russia’s Treasure of Diamonds and Precious Stones. Indicated from left to right: Photos 1, 2, and 4.

23. • We know that the Russian government was
interested in selling the crown jewels at one
time. Indeed, in 1927, they authorized a sale at
Christies in London.
• It is possible that Dr. Fersman sent the photo
album to his colleague Dr. Kunz as a professional
courtesy.
• It is also possible that, as a Vice President of
Tiffany & Co., Dr. Kunz was asked to seek interest
in the purchase of some of the jewelry by
Tiffany’s customers.
• The 1927 Christie’s sale catalog did not include
many photographs and the descriptions of the
lots sold were vague.
• One piece, the nuptial crown, is on display today
at the Hillwood Museum in Washington, DC
• The real mystery is what happened between
1922 and 1925 to the 4 pieces in the USGS
album?
What could all this mean?
Nuptial crown, the Hillwood Museum

24. • Tracking the Story of the Russian Crown Jewels (USGS News Story
– http://www.usgs.gov/blogs/features/usgs_top_story/tracking-the-story-of-the-russian-crown-
jewels/
• The Mysterious Disappearance Of The Russian Crown Jewels
– http://www.npr.org/2012/12/30/168219426/the-mysterious-disappearance-of-the-russian-crown-
jewels
• Request to visit the U.S. Geological Survey Library in Reston, VA
– 703-648-4301 or lbirary@usgs.gov
– NOTE: The USGS Library in Reston is currently undergoing a renovation and may have limited ability
to host visits through September 2013
• Or contact me:
Richard Huffine
richardhuffine@yahoo.com
202-253-3511
What to know more?
1922 Photo

25. References
Fersman, A. E. (1925). Russia’s Treasure of Diamonds and Precious Stones. Moscow: People’s Commissariat of
Finances.
Iljine, Nicolas &Semyonova, Natalya. (2000). Selling Russia's Treasures.: The Story of the Sale of Russian
National Art Treasures Confiscated from the Tsarist Royal Family, the Church, Private Individuals and Museums
in the USSR in 1918 – 1937. Moscow: Trefoil Press.
Kunz, George Frederick. (1919). The Crown Jewels of Russia. Lotus Magazine; v. 10, p. 288-292.
Munn, Geoffrey C. (2001). Tiaras: A History of Splendor. Woodbridge: Antique Collectors’ Club.
We would like to thank ChristelMcCanless and AnnemiekWintraecken for their research on this
project.
We would also like to thank Jeffrey Post, chief curator of gemstones, and the librarians of the
National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution for their consultation and support.
We would also like to thank:
the Hillwood Museum, Washington, DC
Gemological Institute of America Library, Carlsbad, CA
American Museum of Natural History, Library and Archives, New York, NY
Special Thanks