gems, corundum, quality.10, jade, nephrite, Mughal jade, Islamic jade, Fischer-Other

Bernier recounts his travels and experiences in the Mughal Empire between 1656 and 1668, during which he served for several years as a physician at the imperial court and observed at close hand the reigns of Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb. He gives a detailed eyewitness account of the struggle for succession among Shah Jahan’s sons, the defeat of Dara Shikoh, and Aurangzeb’s accession, together with descriptions of the imperial court, army, administration, taxation, landholding, cities, commerce, crafts, and social and religious customs. His journeys include extensive observations on Delhi, Agra, Bengal, and Kashmir, whose landscape and products he describes at length. Of particular gemological interest are Bernier’s observations on the enormous wealth of the Mughal court, including diamonds, pearls, rubies, emeralds, and other precious stones displayed in imperial regalia and the celebrated Peacock Throne, as well as his discussion of the diamond mines and trade of Golconda. The work provides an important seventeenth-century European eyewitness account of the production, commerce, valuation, and conspicuous consumption of gems within the Mughal Empire.