The Mogul Mughal Emerald is one of the largest emerald

Emerald

Emerald is a variety of the mineral beryl colored green by trace amounts of chromium and sometimes vanadium. Beryl has a hardness of 7.5–8 on the 10 point Mohs scale of mineral hardness...

s known. Auction house Christie's

Christie's

Christie's is an art business and a fine arts auction house.- History :The official company literature states that founder James Christie conducted the first sale in London, England, on 5 December 1766, and the earliest auction catalogue the company retains is from December 1766...

 described it as:

The rectangular-cut emerald known as 'The Mogul Mughal' weighing 217.80 carats, the obverse engraved with Shi'a invocations in elegant naskh script

Naskh (script)

Naskh is a specific calligraphic style for writing in the Arabic alphabet, thought to be invented by the Iranian calligrapher Ibn Muqlah Shirazi . The root of this Arabic term means "to copy". It either refers to the fact that it replaced its predecessor, Kufic script, or that this style allows...

, dated 1107 A.H., the reverse carved all over with foliate decoration, the central rosette flanked by single large poppy flowers, with a line of three smaller poppy flowers either side, the bevelled edges carved with cross pattern incisions and herringbone decoration, each of the four sides drilled for attachments, 2 1/16 x 1 9/16 x 7/16 in. (5.2 x 4x 1.2 cm.)

Originally mined in Colombia

Colombia

Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...

, it was sold in India, where emeralds were much desired by the rulers of the Mughal Empire

Mughal Empire

The Mughal Empire ,‎ or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...

. The Mogul Mughal is unique among Mughal emeralds in bearing a date - 1107 A.H. (1695-1696 AD) - which is within the reign of Aurangzeb

Aurangzeb

Abul Muzaffar Muhy-ud-Din Muhammad Aurangzeb Alamgir , more commonly known as Aurangzeb or by his chosen imperial title Alamgir , was the sixth Mughal Emperor of India, whose reign lasted from 1658 until his death in 1707.Badshah Aurangzeb, having ruled most of the Indian subcontinent for nearly...

, the sixth emperor. However, the Mughal rulers were Sunni, whereas the inscription is Shi'a, making it likely that it belonged not to Aurangzeb, but to one of his courtiers or officers.

It was sold on 27 September 2001 by Christie's for £1,543,750 (US $2,272,400), including buyer's premium

Buyer's Premium

In auctions, the buyer's premium is a percentage additional charge on the hammer price of the lot. It is made by the auctioneer to cover 'administrative expenses'....

. As of 17 December 2008, it is in the possession of the Museum of Islamic Art, Doha, Qatar

Qatar

Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its...

.