17.10.2026 18:41
The 9-carat pink diamond Grand Condé, stolen from the Château de Chantilly in France in October 1926 and hidden inside a hollowed-out apple, will be exhibited for the first time in nearly 100 years. The diamond had been found when a hungry maid at the hotel where the thieves were staying bit into the apple. The stone, one of the rare royal jewels that survived the French Revolution, will be on display for visitors at the Condé Museum until January 3.
A rare pink diamond will go on display in France for the first time since it was stolen nearly 100 years ago.
The nine-carat, pear-shaped gem known as the "Grand Condé" was stolen in a night raid on the Château de Chantilly in October 1926 and hidden inside a hollowed-out apple.
FOUND WHEN A HUNGRY SERVANT BIT INTO THE APPLE
The diamond, one of the few royal jewels to survive the French Revolution, was found a few weeks later when a hungry servant at the hotel where the thieves were staying took a bite out of the apple.
Mathieu Deldicque, director of the museum, said that although the apple story may sound far-fetched, it was widely reported in newspapers at the time.
AT THE CONDÉ MUSEUM UNTIL JANUARY 3
The piece will now go back on display at the Condé Museum in the Château de Chantilly until January 3.
Deldicque declined to tell CNN how much the diamond is insured for, and said extensive academic studies had been carried out on the diamond. According to the museum's statement, the results of this analysis, along with previously unseen archival material about the jewel's history and theft, form part of the exhibition.
Europe has witnessed numerous high-value museum and artifact thefts over the past 12 months. These thefts include a daring incident in which jewels were stolen in broad daylight from the Louvre Museum in Paris.
PINK DIAMONDS SELL FOR TENS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS
Naturally occurring pink diamonds are extremely rare. They usually sell for tens of millions of dollars. According to Sotheby's, the highest price ever achieved at auction for a pink diamond was $71.2 million in 2017.
The exact origins of the Grand Condé remain a mystery. According to the Château de Chantilly, it was first mentioned in 1740 in the inventory of Louis Henri de Bourbon, Prince of Condé, drawn up after his death.
It later became part of the collection of Marie-Amélie of Bourbon-Sicily, wife of French King Louis Philippe I, and then of her son Henri, Prince of Orléans, Duke of Aumale.
The Duke of Aumale bequeathed his estate to the Institut de France, including the Château de Chantilly, 50 km north of Paris, as well as thousands of artworks and manuscripts, which make up the Musée Condé collection.
We used artificial intelligence to translate this article, the original of which is in English. A BBC journalist checked the translation before publication.