THE MYSTERY OF PELEGRINA PEARL
Author: Olga Novoselova
Despite the broad variety of gorgeous
pearls known to mankind,
several unique masterpieces still
exist conquering human hearts with their
uniqueness. These include the famous Pelegrina
pearl. Its history is very interesting
which began in the 16th century after being
found near San Domingo. The pearl
was of unprecedented beauty, having a
unique pear-shaped form and a pure milky
white color, with about 33 carats weight.
Many monarchs in Europe owned this
pearl including the French King Philip IV,
who presented the pearl as a wedding gift
to his daughter Marie-Teresa. Until 1707,
the pearl dwelled at France. However, then
its trail went cold. It appeared in Russia in
the 19th century. In 1826, Princess Tatyana
Vasilievna Yusupova bought the pearl Pelegrina
from a merchant. Thus, this pearl
appeared in the Yusupov family.
The Yusupovs were Russian nobles and
one of the richest family in Russia after
the Romanovs. Their fortune exceeded
15 million royal rubles by that time. The
wealth and luxury being owned by the Yusupovs
amazed the imagination of even
tsar’s family.
Over time, the pearl descended to other
family members and the brightest glory
of Pelegrina fell on the time of Zinaida Nikolaevna
Yusupova, who wore this pearl
almost every day without taking it off. At
that time, its price was at least one million
rubles. (photo)
Since then, the value of this pearl has increased
several times. Today, even the most
experienced expert will not take the
responsibility to defi ne the real value of
this unique jewel. Pelegrina is precious
because its shape is considered to be
exemplary accurate, and its purity is splendid.
The pearl has become the most
valuable jewel in the Yusupov’s treasury.
When Zinaida’s son, Felix Yusupov, married
Irina Romanova, the mother-in-law
presented her daughter-in-law a family
heirloom as a wedding gift. And the precious
pendant turned out to be entangled
in the story of the murder of Grigori
Rasputin.
The ‘elders’ and favorite of the imperial
family, Grigori Rasputin, was very interested
in observing it . He repeatedly
reminded the aristocrat of his desire to
see Pelegrina. Thus, when it was necessary
to allure the ‘elders’ into the Yusupov’s
palace, the prince promised to present the
pearl to Rasputin. The old man, madly
dreaming of getting a sea jewel, went to
prince’s house, where he was killed.
Fleeing from the revolution in 1917,
the Yusupovs entrusted the supervision
of their property safety to Buzhinsky, a
butler. Undoubtedly, while leaving the
country, the Yusupovs could not take
away all their treasures, and they were
hidden in numerous cunning hiding
places. The Bolshevists thoroughly ransacked
all the Yusupovs’ houses and interrogated
the servants. As a result, only
two vaults were found with hidden works
of art and jewelry. But Pelegrina pearl was
not there.
Russian agents kept tabs on the wealthy
aristocrats who had succeeded in leaving
Russia, however, they failed in fi nding any
traces of Pelegrina. Not only Russian agents
were looking for the pearl. Americans and
rich Arabs were interested in it, but traces
seemed to be completely lost.
Years passed, Felix Yusupov, together with
his wife and faithful servant Grishka, lived
out their lives in Paris. A rich aristocrat was
not used to counting money, so he spent
and gave it away without counting. Soon, he
completely ran out of money and in 1953 the
prince, having taken out Pelegrina from the
cache, went to the famous Parisian jeweler.
The last trace of the pearl appeared in 1989,
when it surfaced in the form of a diamond
pendant at Christie’s in Geneva. At that
time, it was sold to an unknown buyer for
$ 486,000.
Yusupov, of course, had received much less
for the pearl,
but this money
was quickly
spent by
the aristocrat.
For the rest
of his life, he
lived at the
expense of his
only servant
Grisha.
