The 137-carat Florentine Diamond was thought to be missing since the early 1920s.In November 2025, The New York Times reported that it has been in a Canadian bank vault since 1953.Empress Zita of the former Austria-Hungary transported the diamond out of Europe during WWII, her descendants revealed.

One of the biggest royal jewelry mysteries of the last century has been solved. The legendary Florentine Diamond, once owned by the Medicis and Marie Antoinette’s parents, has resurfaced in a bank vault in Canada. Descendants of Charles I, former emperor of Austria-Hungary and member of the Hapsburg dynasty, revealed to The New York Times in November 2025 that the marvelous gem had never really been lost. 

Weighing over 130 carats, the yellow Florentine is among the world’s most valuable diamonds—but for the last 100 years, its whereabouts were unknown to all but a few. The media speculated that the gem had been misplaced, stolen, or recut and sold amidst the chaos of two world wars. In reality, it was hidden by Charles I’s wife, Empress Zita.

Empress Zita of Austria with her family in exile, circa 1920.

Hulton Archive/Getty Images

The emperor’s grandson, Karl von Habsburg-Lothringen, told The New York Times that he and his family kept the diamond’s location a secret to honor Zita’s wishes. The empress died in 1989 at 96 years old. “I think she wanted to make sure that it was not in her lifetime,” he explained of why the Florentine did not resurface earlier.  “I have the feeling she was very glad that some important objects of the family are something that she had saved,” he continued.

Below, learn the complete story about the famous Florentine Diamond, including its royal pedigree, why it was kept in Canada, and where it might end up next.

It’s a 137-carat pear-shaped pale-yellow diamond worth an estimated $750,000.

It’s not everyday you see a rock as large as the Florentine, which clocks in at an astounding 137 carats. The pear-shaped stone originated in India, according to Britannica. It made its way into royal possession sometime before or during the 15th century, when Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, wore it on his armor in battle. Impressive as it looked, the diamond failed to protect him from being killed at the Battle of Nancy in 1477.

The Times reported that the Habsburg family declined to speculate on the stone’s value in 2025; however, a 2024 ArtNet feature on the whereabouts of the stone suggested it has a current value of between $700,000 and $750,000. While that’s no small sum, it pales in comparison to the valuations of other famous diamonds—for example, the ‘cursed’ Hope Diamond has an estimated worth of over $200 million. The Regent Diamond, part of the French crown jewels, comes with a price tag of $60 million.

A glass replica of the yellow Florentine Diamond, thought missing until November 2025.

Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

It was previously owned by a pope and Marie Antoinette’s parents.

An 18th-century portrait of Emperor Francis I, father of Marie Antoinette, by Martin van Meytens.

Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Charles the Bold’s loss was Pope Julius II’s gain, according to Britannica. His Holiness (and later the Medici family) possessed the Florentine Diamond from the early 16th century until the early 18th century. 

The end of the male Medici line led to its passage into the hands of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, per The New York Times. Specifically, Empress Maria Theresa of Austria gained the jewel upon her 1736 marriage to Francis Stephen, then Duke of Tuscany. The couple welcomed their 15th and perhaps most famous child, daughter Marie Antoinette, in November 1755.

Upon the collapse of Austria-Hungary in 1918, Emperor Charles I transported the Florentine Diamond and other jewels considered to be the private property of the Habsburg-Lorraine house to Switzerland, where he and his family lived in exile. Thus began the mystery of the fate of the Florentine, with The Washington Post reporting it as “missing” in 1921, per the Times.

Empress Zita secretly transported the Florentine Diamond to Canada during WWII.

Charles I, Emperor of Austria-Hungary, with his wife, Empress Zita, in 1916.

George Rinhart/Corbis via Getty Images

Zita and her children continued to relocate after Charles I’s death in 1922 from pneumonia. They left Switzerland for Spain and then Belgium. Upon the Nazi’s annexation of Austria in 1938, the family fled to the United States. Zita carried the family’s jewels, including the Florentine Diamond, in a cardboard suitcase, her children told the Times.

The royals next relocated to Canada, where Zita stayed until 1953. That year, upon the empress’s return to Europe, the precious gems found their final home in a Quebec bank vault. Von Habsburg-Lothringen told the Times she only told her sons Robert and Rodolphe about the diamond’s whereabouts, and made them promise to keep it a secret until 100 years after her late husband’s death.

One of Austria’s imperial court jewelers examined the diamond and released a statement to the Times explaining why he believed it to be authentic.

It may remain in Canada or return to Austria.

If you want a glimpse of the majestic Florentine Diamond, don’t book your flight to Quebec just yet. While the family told The New York Times of their desire to display this and other jewels at a Canadian museum as a gesture of appreciation for the country taking in their grandmother and parents during WWII, the Austrian government may have other plans.

Austria’s vice chancellor and minister of culture said in a statement, “If it turns out that the Florentine Diamond is the property of the Republic of Austria, I will initiate the process of returning the jewel.”