Database: Theft of the French Crown Jewels

According to an inventory made in 1691, the French Crown Jewels comprised 5,885 diamonds, 1,588 precious stones, and 488 pearls. Among the most famous gems were the Regent, a 140.64-carat diamond; the Sancy, a 55.23-carat pale yellow diamond that Louis XIV liked to affix to his hat, and the most famous, the Blue Diamond of the French Crown, or French Blue, a crudely finished stone weighing 115 carats, brought from the colonies of the Indies. The jewels were stolen in September, 1792 when the Royal Treasury was looted by rioters. The thieves were quickly arrested and executed at the Place de la Révolution. And yet, many of the collection's most precious items were never recovered.