Kohinoor over troubled waters

From their study of old texts, authors speculate it originated from South India

KOHINOOR

The Story of the World’s Most Infamous Diamond

William Dalrymple and Anita Anand

Juggernaut

239 pages; Rs 499

Picture this: One owner had his face eaten by maggots, another had her brains bashed in by her handmaidens. One owner was forced to give it up when he was a mere child; another had a black eye from a murderous attack when she finally received it. When it was being transported by sea, a cholera epidemic killed off all but five sailors on board. Wherever it went, the Kohinoor symbolised ultimate power (except when it briefly served as a heedless mullah’s paperweight) — but