Among the most well known diamonds is the Hope Diamond. This 45.52 carat steel blue diamond is currently on display at the Smithsonian. The legends of the ill-fortune and curse bestowed on the possessor of the Hope Diamond are many. This diamond was donated to the Smithsonian in 1958. The Hope was originally a rather flat, blocky 110-carat rough.



The Dresden Green Diamond stands out among the natural colored diamonds. It is by far the largest green diamond in the world weighing 40.70 carats. This diamond is historic, large and has a natural green color with a slight blue overtone. These facts make it virtually priceless.

The Conde Pink Diamond is a pear shaped and weighs 9.01-carats. Though not nearly as large as many of the other famous diamonds on our list what makes this diamond stand out in addition to its color is that this pink diamond was once owned by Louis XIII.

The Tiffany Yellow Diamond is a beautiful canary-yellow octahedron weighing 287.42 in the rough (metric) carats discovered in either 1877 or 1878 in South Africa. The gem after cutting boasts the extraordinary weight of 128.54 carats. And until very recently, was the largest golden-yellow diamond in the world.

The Koh-I-Noor Diamond ( Mountain of Light ) is now among the British Crown Jewels. This fabulous ancient diamond weighs 105.60 carats. First mentioned in 1304, it is believed to have been once set in Shah Jehan's famous peacock throne as one of the peacocks eyes.

The Agra Diamond is graded as a naturally colored Fancy Light Pink and weighs 32.34 carats. It was sold for about 6.9 million in 1990. Since this sale, it has been modified to a cushion shape diamond weighing about 28.15 carats.

The Transvaal Blue Diamond is a pear cut. This beautiful blue diamond weighs 25 carats. It was found in the Premier Diamond Mine in Transvaal, South Africa. South Africa of course, has been the source of many of the world's large quality diamonds.

The Great Chrysanthemum Diamond was discovered in the summer of 1963, in a South African diamond field. This 198.28-carat fancy brown diamond appeared to be a light honey color in its rough state. However, after cutting, it proved to be a rich golden brown, with overtones of sienna and burnt orange making it very rare indeed.

The Taylor-Burton Diamond is a pear-shaped 69.42 carat diamond. Cartier of New York purchased this diamond at an auction in 1969 and christened it "Cartier." The next day Richard Burton bought the diamond for Elizabeth Taylor. He then renamed it the "Taylor-Burton". In 1978, Elizabeth Taylor put the diamond up for sale. Prospective buyers had to pay $2,500 each to view the diamond to cover the costs of showing it. Finally, in June of 1979, the diamond was sold for nearly $3 million dollars.