As the person who's invested many weeks writing the (hopefully definitive) Wikipedia article on this jewel back in 2020, I just wanted to say you've done a wonderful job telling its story. Thanks for featuring this lost treasure!
That’s kind - I hope we agree in general on the details. It’s a complex story this one to piece together, but the primary source evidence is very rich.
It might be pretty to some. It is an expensive piece but I think it is not at all flattering. Yet, the story about it is amazing. If one day this piece comes out of hiding it would be the talk of the day to all jewelry collectors. You gave us a lot of information on this and I thank you for sharing this with everyone.
Good evening @lianefehrle 😊 It was offcourse à jewel ment for a man. More interested in showing off the beauty of the minerals than the setting itself.
Thank you, Allan! This is a marvelous video. I wouldn't be surprised if the Three Brothers wasn't broken up and the individual stones reset into other pieces. We may never know.
Brilliant Dr Allan! It is amazing where jewels like these disappear to. I've always wondered what happened to all those on Elisabeth's' Mappa Mundi dress.
Stolen, all STOLEN. In those days it was easy to steal jewels and the like. Also, Kings did not have the monies to buy such frivolous jewels, it all came from the taxpayers, so, essentially, the jewels, any jewels in the possession of any Kings / Queens essentially belong to the people of that country.
Thanks for a thoroughly enjoyable video detailing the history of this obscure jewel I must confess I never truly noticed the jewel even though I've seen the featured portraits many times I think our modern eyes are just too accustomed to seeing the royals covered in bling and we perhaps don't remember that there was no "costume jewelry" back then It was all real with real stones and very valuable To my eyes the jewel looks curiously modern in it's original form as worn by Elizabeth I Like costume jewelry one might expect to see on a fashion model in the 1960s or 70s However I approve of James I's resetting of the stones in a more elaborate form I think perhaps the piece was too valuable to find a market and was broken up and sold for parts which is sad because it means it's unlikely to be seen again Great video!
I’ve bought my wife jewelry over the years at almost every special occasion with the hope that they will be passed down. There’s nothing like objects with a history and a story.
@@GStimmi Because I am dying and this great video put me in mind of how trinkets such as jewelry can endure through generations. Didn’t intend to make it all about me. I was simply reflecting over one small aspect of my life and the person I love.
The story of this jewel is deeply fascinating as it crosses borders, changes hands, is reset, resold and then lost. It is almost unbelievable that a jewel with such pedigree could be 'lost'. Misplaced? Hidden? Even if it had been broken up the stones were so distinctive and well known that they would have been surely recognised. Perhaps it will be like some great paintings and treasures that are presumed lost but centuries later resurface, occasionally in op shops! Thanks again Allan. Always enlightening.
Wonderfully told Allan! I recently finished reading "The Burgundians: A Vanished Empire - A History of 1111 Years and One day" by Bart Van Loo about the Valois House of Burgundy in which the "The Three Brothers" jewel is talked about. This video completes an important part of the story of the last battle of Duke Charles the Bold.
I was able to get my hands on a Georgian 5 garnet ring from my Grandma's collection after she passed, and I made sure my sisters got her agate rings. None are particularly valuable, but I knew they were all old.
That was really fascinating how that jewel moved around Europe and then just disappeared. I suspect it was broken up and the individual gems were incorporated into other jewellery.
Invasion of Amsterdam by William of Orange in 1650, and general upheaval in the country for some time... I reckon it was broken up, we won't be seeing this again. I would love to be wrong though!
I found reference to the spinel being declared the second August birthstone - your video is timely then and with my birthday being in August, quite lovely - thank you (from Canada)
Another outstanding video , Allan. Thank you for your incredible information. I am named after Elizabeth and my second after her mother Queen Anne Boleyn 😊 I have to admit that with these names, I cannot help but be a Tudor geek!!! Thank you for sharing ♥️ xx
"It is such a wonderful trail of evidence..." Yes indeed. And we are fortunate to have such an eloquent and informed investigator to tie the evidence together and present us with an entertaining and wholly engaging tidbit of history. Bravo!
Thank you for this very interesting video. It’s fascinating it stayed together in one piece for so long. It’s either long lost or broken up into “smaller” pieces.
Thank you for another fascinating video. though I love gemstones, I don't actually think this was a very attractive piece, and I bet it was broken up and the component parts reused. But you've got to love James sticking it in his hat!
Such a fascinating journey these jewels have had, Allan! Thank you for including the wonderful portraits of the people involved. It brings the story to life when faces are paired with names and I appreciate all of the research you put into your videos.
Thank you Allan for this brilliant video ! The story of the jewels looted from Charles The Bold tent in Granson is truly captivating. The Sancy diamond and others ... I've heard before of three balas rubies, but I knew nothing of the Three Brothers. One more time, I've learned something thanks to you
Wow oh wow! What a fantastic film this time. I love your reports! The paintings are so rich and clear, and spectacular. For those of us who love history and alas are not as able to get out as they were, being oldies now I thank you for all your work filming and researching the facts and presenting them in an exemplary way. This one is definitely up there at the top of the list. I echo your feeling that maybe one day the three brothers/sisters may once again appear. But …. I do suspect it will have been broken up and put into different jewels somewhere by now. But stranger things have happened we can keep hoping. 😘✨
What an amazing story. Thank you very much. Best wishes from the Netherlands, and our sincere apologies for losing the jewel 😉 keeping our houses tidy is not our strong suit 🫣
How wonderfully interesting. What a story it could tell. Wonder if it succumbed to sticky fingers and was then broken up for other pieces. Sad but palpable. If it’s ever found, it’d make a resounding noise amongst all collectors. Imagine trying to trace its provenance. It’s got more passports than the biggest jet setter! 🙏🙏🙏👵🇦🇺
I hope it does make a reappearance. even if it's been refurbished if prove to be the original I would like to see this jewel. It would be very interesting if such a luck were to happen that it be displayed with the alter cloth which was discovered a few years back to have been once one of a lost dress of the queen. I always love it when jewelry or clothing that survived the centuries that belonged to historical figures have been discovered. especially when there is a portrait of someone wearing the rediscovered lost item.
So, the Ballast Ruby's are like a medieval form of, or a medieval version of a so-called 'mood' stone which was popularized in the United States in the 1980s. Such types of stones were put into jewelry ultimately called a 'mood ring'. It was with the same idea that supposedly wearing it or pressing one's thumb against it determined the type of mood that the wearer was having.
At 02:33, in the painting of James I of England/James VI of Scotland, is that not the same chain around his hat as the chain in the Henry VIII/Elizabeth paintings?
😮 I just learned that Bloody Mary actually cared for her half sister Elizabeth and they both had red hair like their father go figure and situations it was tragic all around victims of a cruel man and his obsession of having a a male heir. A beautiful piece of history if only it could be found once again and placed in the tower of London
I don't see the "Three Brothers" pendant on the dad's portrait at all. Where is he wearing it, at? Also, Pr. Edward....A 15 y.o. green behind the ears prince negotiating an inter-country deal involving land and jewels??? To my 21st century thoughts and mind it just doesn't seem plausible. Hard to imagine..... For that matter how would he have known of the significance of such a jewel? Was he just hanging on to it because it once belonged to his father?
There aren't many huge step cut/table cut? spinels in any known jewels are there? So even if its been broken up, the pieces would be pretty obvious. Also not a lot of huge point cut diamonds... With that said, both of those styles of cuts are so far out of style (although french cut diamonds are trendy atm, rosecuts, and octahedron diamonds etc). I think the stones have likely been recut never to be seen again. Theres no way a medieval jewel of that quality survives and nobody knows about it. I mean, (I may be wrong) but how many of Duchess Anna of Bavaria's jewels survived?...
It really isn't all that flattering. The so called "rubies" are spinels. It's certainly something I personally wouldn't wear. However, historically, it's an interesting story it has. It was certainly stolen and probably cut down to create something else, if someone didn't want it known that originally it was The 3 Brothers. We might never know where it ended up. That jewel belonged to the people, I believe the Burgundians (France")
My cynical guess as to what happened to the jewel is that it was broken up and the constituent jewels sold, with the gold being melted down. Since it's a relatively famous item I doubt that it's tucked away in a private collection somewhere, hiding in a jewel box. But we can hope it surfaces, intact, and with the details of what happened to it after it after Charles I's reign/downfall.
That'd be my guess. Honestly a bit surprising it survived as long as it did, given it seems to have been a bit of a white elephant to most people who ended up with it. If you can only sell it by ever-so-cleverly re-branding it (Three Sisters! They'll never see through that one!) or forcing a desperate debtor to accept it as part of a deal, maybe it's time to just break it up and turn it into something a bit less cursed.
I wonder if Cletcher (sp?) just kept it after Charles l was beheaded and Cromwell took over...Maybe just to break it up and sell the stones quietly when it seemed as if Cromwell's 'reign' was going to last...
If you're wondering what happened to it as a jeweler or a former metalsmith I will tell you what happened the pieces were taken apart the gold and the gold that there might have been was melted down and used for cash the jewels will reset and other things and that is what happened to it there is nothing left of it now, and the reason for that may very well be it was too famous to be sold otherwise.
Except the stones there do not look like rubies nor does the center stone look more like a diamond it's all very strange because the colors don't add up.
As the person who's invested many weeks writing the (hopefully definitive) Wikipedia article on this jewel back in 2020, I just wanted to say you've done a wonderful job telling its story. Thanks for featuring this lost treasure!
That’s kind - I hope we agree in general on the details. It’s a complex story this one to piece together, but the primary source evidence is very rich.
It might be pretty to some. It is an expensive piece but I think it is not at all flattering. Yet, the story about it is amazing. If one day this piece comes out of hiding it would be the talk of the day to all jewelry collectors. You gave us a lot of information on this and I thank you for sharing this with everyone.
Good evening @lianefehrle 😊
It was offcourse à jewel ment for a man. More interested in showing off the beauty of the minerals than the setting itself.
This jewel is centre of the novel “The Love of Stones” by Tobias Hill , great read
Thank you, Allan! This is a marvelous video. I wouldn't be surprised if the Three Brothers wasn't broken up and the individual stones reset into other pieces. We may never know.
@@stepps511 I really hope not. It would be wonderful if the jewel turned up on day intact. Although, sadly you may be right.
The individual elements are so unique and so well documented that I would think reuse would have been spotted by now.
That could be the most correct explanation, many jewels were `reworked` for another generation..
Brilliant Dr Allan! It is amazing where jewels like these disappear to. I've always wondered what happened to all those on Elisabeth's' Mappa Mundi dress.
Stolen, all STOLEN. In those days it was easy to steal jewels and the like. Also, Kings did not have the monies to buy such frivolous jewels, it all came from the taxpayers, so, essentially, the jewels, any jewels in the possession of any Kings / Queens essentially belong to the people of that country.
It is a tragedy that this piece no longer exists. Thank you for helping to ensure that the legend of "Les Trois Freres" doesn't get lost.
There is no indication it doesn't. It's likely, but can just as well be in a dusty attic somewhere in an old Dutch building. :)
The ammount of information you manage to pack in these short pieces really enjoy them Thanks.
Glad you’re enjoying my channel!
Thanks for a thoroughly enjoyable video detailing the history of this obscure jewel I must confess I never truly noticed the jewel even though I've seen the featured portraits many times I think our modern eyes are just too accustomed to seeing the royals covered in bling and we perhaps don't remember that there was no "costume jewelry" back then It was all real with real stones and very valuable To my eyes the jewel looks curiously modern in it's original form as worn by Elizabeth I Like costume jewelry one might expect to see on a fashion model in the 1960s or 70s However I approve of James I's resetting of the stones in a more elaborate form I think perhaps the piece was too valuable to find a market and was broken up and sold for parts which is sad because it means it's unlikely to be seen again Great video!
...I'll have a look in the attic .
I’ve bought my wife jewelry over the years at almost every special occasion with the hope that they will be passed down. There’s nothing like objects with a history and a story.
I have many pieces I have inherited from family, it means very little when the there's no story along with it, its not the value that matters.
Why are you talking about you ?
@@GStimmi Because I am dying and this great video put me in mind of how trinkets such as jewelry can endure through generations. Didn’t intend to make it all about me. I was simply reflecting over one small aspect of my life and the person I love.
Tobias Hill wrote an amazing novel about the three brethren jewel. Its called 'The love of Stones' I highly recommend it. 😊
Yes! I thoroughly second this comment. An excellent read.
Loved it ❤
All your videos are a joy to see & experience. Thank you.
The story of this jewel is deeply fascinating as it crosses borders, changes hands, is reset, resold and then lost. It is almost unbelievable that a jewel with such pedigree could be 'lost'. Misplaced? Hidden? Even if it had been broken up the stones were so distinctive and well known that they would have been surely recognised. Perhaps it will be like some great paintings and treasures that are presumed lost but centuries later resurface, occasionally in op shops! Thanks again Allan. Always enlightening.
This jewel is centre of the novel “The Love of Stones” by Tobias Hill , great read
Wonderfully told Allan! I recently finished reading "The Burgundians: A Vanished Empire - A History of 1111 Years and One day" by Bart Van Loo about the Valois House of Burgundy in which the "The Three Brothers" jewel is talked about. This video completes an important part of the story of the last battle of Duke Charles the Bold.
This jewel is also centre of the novel “The Love of Stones” by Tobias Hill , great read
Brilliant (in more ways than one)!
Fascinating. Let's hope the jewel turns up intact one day.
Your channel is a true gem!
I was able to get my hands on a Georgian 5 garnet ring from my Grandma's collection after she passed, and I made sure my sisters got her agate rings. None are particularly valuable, but I knew they were all old.
Well, that was fun and fascinating. Now, everyone in the UK will be looking at car boot sales for the lost jewel!
That was really fascinating how that jewel moved around Europe and then just disappeared. I suspect it was broken up and the individual gems were incorporated into other jewellery.
What an interesting account. Many thanks.
Just wonderful. Many thanks!!
Invasion of Amsterdam by William of Orange in 1650, and general upheaval in the country for some time... I reckon it was broken up, we won't be seeing this again. I would love to be wrong though!
I found reference to the spinel being declared the second August birthstone - your video is timely then and with my birthday being in August, quite lovely - thank you (from Canada)
Amazing story of the travels of the jewels. Thank you.
This jewel is centre of the novel “The Love of Stones” by Tobias Hill , great read
Another outstanding video , Allan. Thank you for your incredible information. I am named after Elizabeth and my second after her mother Queen Anne Boleyn 😊 I have to admit that with these names, I cannot help but be a Tudor geek!!! Thank you for sharing ♥️ xx
"It is such a wonderful trail of evidence..." Yes indeed. And we are fortunate to have such an eloquent and informed investigator to tie the evidence together and present us with an entertaining and wholly engaging tidbit of history. Bravo!
I love it's asymmetry,how the mount had to accommodate the stones,rather than the other way round.
I always look forward to your posts! Thanks for all the work you do. Your erudition is greatly appreciated.
Thank you for this very interesting video. It’s fascinating it stayed together in one piece for so long. It’s either long lost or broken up into “smaller” pieces.
Thank you. Very fascinating
Another wonderful video! Thank you
💖🕊️ Thank you for such a lushly beautiful and compelling journey!
You’re welcome, glad you enjoyed it!
Thank you for another fascinating video. though I love gemstones, I don't actually think this was a very attractive piece, and I bet it was broken up and the component parts reused. But you've got to love James sticking it in his hat!
Such a fascinating journey these jewels have had, Allan! Thank you for including the wonderful portraits of the people involved. It brings the story to life when faces are paired with names and I appreciate all of the research you put into your videos.
Thank you, Dr. Barton!
Wonderful as ALWAYS. ❤😊❤
Thanks Jill
Thank you Allan for this brilliant video ! The story of the jewels looted from Charles The Bold tent in Granson is truly captivating. The Sancy diamond and others ... I've heard before of three balas rubies, but I knew nothing of the Three Brothers. One more time, I've learned something thanks to you
The Sancy diamond will get a video all of its own. An equally fascinating story behind that stone.
Amazing video, Allan
A fascinating story!
what an absolutely amazing video!! I don't care about jewels beyond a "ooooo shiny!" reaction, but the story behind this jewel was so fascinating.
The history is much the most interesting part.
Wow oh wow! What a fantastic film this time. I love your reports! The paintings are so rich and clear, and spectacular. For those of us who love history and alas are not as able to get out as they were, being oldies now I thank you for all your work filming and researching the facts and presenting them in an exemplary way. This one is definitely up there at the top of the list. I echo your feeling that maybe one day the three brothers/sisters may once again appear. But …. I do suspect it will have been broken up and put into different jewels somewhere by now. But stranger things have happened we can keep hoping. 😘✨
You never know! So glad you’re appreciating my channel.
Thank you Allan, really loved this video l was hooked right from the beginning 😁
I loved this thank you very interesting
What an amazing story. Thank you very much. Best wishes from the Netherlands, and our sincere apologies for losing the jewel 😉 keeping our houses tidy is not our strong suit 🫣
It would be absolutely amazing!
Should it ever show up, please let us know!
I would say Cromwell and his men got their hands on it like so many other items of the Royal jewels and destroyed them.
Wow what a jewel with a story
Thanks 🎉
It’s always a good day when you upload. Greetings from Brazil.
Fabulous!
One wonders. Thank you.
Great video as usual Dr Barton
How wonderfully interesting. What a story it could tell. Wonder if it succumbed to sticky fingers and was then broken up for other pieces. Sad but palpable. If it’s ever found, it’d make a resounding noise amongst all collectors. Imagine trying to trace its provenance. It’s got more passports than the biggest jet setter! 🙏🙏🙏👵🇦🇺
Thanks!
Thank you!
I hope it does make a reappearance. even if it's been refurbished if prove to be the original I would like to see this jewel. It would be very interesting if such a luck were to happen that it be displayed with the alter cloth which was discovered a few years back to have been once one of a lost dress of the queen. I always love it when jewelry or clothing that survived the centuries that belonged to historical figures have been discovered. especially when there is a portrait of someone wearing the rediscovered lost item.
So, the Ballast Ruby's are like a medieval form of, or a medieval version of a so-called 'mood' stone which was popularized in the United States in the 1980s. Such types of stones were put into jewelry ultimately called a 'mood ring'.
It was with the same idea that supposedly wearing it or pressing one's thumb against it determined the type of mood that the wearer was having.
How weird that someone stole the original stone replicas of the jewels, on her tomb!
Oh I hope it reappears!
would be fascinating to know what happened to it
I hope I'm wrong but my intuition says it got taken apart and sold in pieces or fashioned into separate pieces of jewelry.
At 02:33, in the painting of James I of England/James VI of Scotland, is that not the same chain around his hat as the chain in the Henry VIII/Elizabeth paintings?
😮 I just learned that Bloody Mary actually cared for her half sister Elizabeth and they both had red hair like their father go figure and situations it was tragic all around victims of a cruel man and his obsession of having a a male heir. A beautiful piece of history if only it could be found once again and placed in the tower of London
To bad it got sold even though it was designated an heirloom of the Crown.
I don't see the "Three Brothers" pendant on the dad's portrait at all. Where is he wearing it, at?
Also, Pr. Edward....A 15 y.o. green behind the ears prince negotiating an inter-country deal involving land and jewels???
To my 21st century thoughts and mind it just doesn't seem plausible. Hard to imagine.....
For that matter how would he have known of the significance of such a jewel? Was he just hanging on to it because it once belonged to his father?
There aren't many huge step cut/table cut? spinels in any known jewels are there? So even if its been broken up, the pieces would be pretty obvious. Also not a lot of huge point cut diamonds... With that said, both of those styles of cuts are so far out of style (although french cut diamonds are trendy atm, rosecuts, and octahedron diamonds etc). I think the stones have likely been recut never to be seen again. Theres no way a medieval jewel of that quality survives and nobody knows about it. I mean, (I may be wrong) but how many of Duchess Anna of Bavaria's jewels survived?...
It really isn't all that flattering. The so called "rubies" are spinels. It's certainly something I personally wouldn't wear. However, historically, it's an interesting story it has. It was certainly stolen and probably cut down to create something else, if someone didn't want it known that originally it was The 3 Brothers. We might never know where it ended up. That jewel belonged to the people, I believe the Burgundians (France")
Elizabeth got it from her father
My cynical guess as to what happened to the jewel is that it was broken up and the constituent jewels sold, with the gold being melted down. Since it's a relatively famous item I doubt that it's tucked away in a private collection somewhere, hiding in a jewel box. But we can hope it surfaces, intact, and with the details of what happened to it after it after Charles I's reign/downfall.
That'd be my guess. Honestly a bit surprising it survived as long as it did, given it seems to have been a bit of a white elephant to most people who ended up with it. If you can only sell it by ever-so-cleverly re-branding it (Three Sisters! They'll never see through that one!) or forcing a desperate debtor to accept it as part of a deal, maybe it's time to just break it up and turn it into something a bit less cursed.
Very interesting, will we ever know what happened to it?? 😉
I wonder if Cletcher (sp?) just kept it after Charles l was beheaded and Cromwell took over...Maybe just to break it up and sell the stones quietly when it seemed as if Cromwell's 'reign' was going to last...
If you're wondering what happened to it as a jeweler or a former metalsmith I will tell you what happened the pieces were taken apart the gold and the gold that there might have been was melted down and used for cash the jewels will reset and other things and that is what happened to it there is nothing left of it now, and the reason for that may very well be it was too famous to be sold otherwise.
The jewel is in Portchester, England
?
Fascinating! The thing is ugly as all heck to my eyes, but perhaps that's just me...
A jewel is so easily stolen or lost.
Too bad the original maker had a poor sense of symmetry. Makes you wonder why James' jeweler didn't straighten it out when he disassembled it.
Except the stones there do not look like rubies nor does the center stone look more like a diamond it's all very strange because the colors don't add up.
I don't think the 3brothers was very lucky for the Tudors
Get your metal detector out
Maybe it looks better in person, but it’s not to my taste.
It really was not very pretty. I imagine it’s been broken up, reset, recut etc.
Good god its really ugly!
You don’t like it then? 😂
A remarkable journey. One can only wonder where it is today; whether whole or broken-up.