Jean-Baptiste Tavernier was fabulously rich. He made friends with princes and shahs, gave Louis XIV Indian jewelry for the French crown and saw the fabulous Shah-Safi pearl in the treasuries of Persia, but died in Moscow, alone, old and sick, and no one knows where he was buried.
Probably, few people would not want to be in the place of the Frenchman Jean-Baptiste Tavernier - a man with a legendary biography who in the 17th century made six trips to the East and India, traveled to many countries and at the same time not only became a rich man, but also kept most of the European gem trade. It was thanks to him that Europe learned about the curses of sparkling Indian diamonds, about the beauty of oriental sapphires and about giant flawless pearls that were unmatched in the entire Mediterranean.
From Paris to Mantua
Jean-Baptiste was the son of Protestant merchants who came to the French capital from Antwerp, a fairly large city in Flanders (modern Belgium) at that time. He was accustomed to trading from an early age - by the age of 16 he, first with his father, and then on his own, traveled half of Europe, concluding deals and accompanying goods. Spain, Italy, Sardinia and Corsica, Germany and Great Britain were left behind.
Obviously, he knew a lot about trade and was not only talented in this, but also unusually successful, because Europe at the beginning of the 17th century was a dangerous place, especially for a teenager returning with a profit.
To separate from his father's business, Tavernier entered the service of the governor of Hungary, possibly supplying provisions or uniforms to his army. He was present at the hostilities of the Hungarians against the Turks, and it is obvious that this made an impression on him. However, he was clearly not impressed by the profit he earned, since he soon went into the service of the dukes from the house of Gonzaga - the rulers of Mantua in Lombardy (Italy).
Here Tavernier began to look closely at the sea trade - he was attracted by the stories of pilgrims, travelers and merchants arriving from across the sea, who brought incense, silk and spices from the East. The smell of saffron mixed with the smell of the sea, fish, and young Jean-Baptiste dreamed of the golden sands of the Arabian deserts heated by the sun and the jewels shining in the crowns of Indian maharajas.
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Another would have decided that all this is an art, and a tit in his hand is better than a crane in the sky, he would settle down in sunny Italy, marry a black-haired girl …
But Tavernier was not like that and did not exchange the silk of the distant eastern tents, the sound of the ocean, the ringing of sabers, the measured tread of a caravan laden with goods for momentary pleasures. And in 1630, a 25-year-old merchant, accompanied by three Catholic monks, went to the Middle East. He wanted to see the world and conquer it - no matter what.
It is known that his first trip lasted 3 years - he drove through Istanbul, visited Erzurum, Baku and reached the capital of Persia Isfahan. One can only guess what kind of deals Tavernier entered into on the way, what goods he bought and what adventures he experienced traveling with caravans of merchants.
However, Tavernier could not get rich, and it was this dream that led him to distant countries. Returning to France through Baghdad and Aleppo, he was forced to go into the service of Prince Gaston, Duke of Orleans, who, after an unsuccessful attempt to overthrow Cardinal Richelieu, who was then the de facto head of France, hatched new plans to seize power.
Having saved funds for a new expedition, Tavernier decided to go on a journey again. He was on his way to the legendary city of Agra, to the court of the padishah of the Baburid empire Shah Jahan I. Just before the arrival of the Frenchman, a drought broke out, which led to the death of millions of people, the padishah himself waged wars with the Persians, fighting for Kandahar, and built the Taj Mahal mausoleum for his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died in childbirth.
This time, the clever and courageous Frenchman returned home with a catch - he bought up jewelry from local princes in India and, having sold them later in Europe, finally got rich!
Agra treasures
It is believed that it was from this trip that Tavernier brought the famous Blue French diamond to France.
This stone had an amazing blue color and an impressive 69 carats. There was a legend that during a famine one of the peasants stole a diamond from the temple of the Indian god Rama, tearing it out of a diadem adorning the head of a pagan demon.
In France, Tavernier presented the diamond to Louis XIV along with other stones for the French crown; and the king ordered the blue stone to be cut in the shape of a heart.
After the death of the king, who lived a long life and died at a venerable age from gangrene, the diamond passed to Marie Antoinette, and after her execution disappeared for a short time. Later it became known that it was divided into several stones, the largest of which - "Hope" - is now in the United States and is exhibited in the museum of the Smithsonian Institution; this was confirmed by scientists by studying the composition of the stone. The diamond is only 14 carats and bears the name of the English banker Hope, who bought it somewhere on the occasion.
The location of another stone made from the "Blue Frenchman" is known - it adorned the ring of Empress Maria Feodorovna, wife of Paul I, and is now kept in the Diamond Fund of Russia.
Tavernier brought from India another diamond of amazing beauty and shape - the famous "Ahmedabad", which he bought in the city of the same name. Tavernier wrote that initially the diamond's weight reached 157.5 carats, but due to shortcomings it had to be cut on both sides, after which the weight decreased to 94.5 carats.
For some time, the diamond disappeared from sight, and then it was allegedly seen in India, with the wife of Wajid Ali Shah, the ruler of the Aud region. The woman was a rebel leader during the sepoy uprising, and then left for Nepal, where she paid for safety with diamonds. The diamond is now in the collection of the wealthy Robert Mowadu, who bought it at auction for $ 4.3 million.
The name of Tavernier is also associated with the news of the Shah-Safi pearl - the largest and most perfect pearl in the world. It was kept in the treasury of the Shah of Persia and weighed 125 carats. Its cost was estimated at 1.4 million French livres.
The last expedition
It is not surprising that Tavernier, having seen enough of such riches, did not rest on his laurels, even being introduced to the king, but preferred to continue to visit the East.
He was in India 4 more times, the last time going there in 1664, when he was already 59 years old. In total, he traveled, on foot or in the saddle, a journey of 240 thousand kilometers. The most famous of his travels was the 1643 expedition, when he reached the island of Java, and returned to France by sea, on a Dutch ship, circumnavigating Africa.
He became a very rich man, but he still married “for money” - the daughter of a Parisian jeweler. In France, he had a private castle, and the king gave him a title of nobility.
When Tavernier was 83 years old, he decided to go to the East again. Why did he need it? Is it a whim of a distraught old man, or did he suddenly become impoverished and decided to improve his affairs with such a dangerous trip? It is not known for certain.
But it is known that he died on the way from Copenhagen to Persia, unexpectedly ill in Moscow. Right there, in Moscow, he was buried.
Mikhail TROITSKY