Which one of the following foreign travellers elaborately discussed about diamonds and diamond mines

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Question

Which one of the following foreign travellers elaborately discussed about diamonds and diamond mines of India?

Accepted Answer

Correct Answer: B — Jean-Baptiste TavernierStep-by-step Solution:Jean-Baptiste Tavernier (1605-1689) was a French gem merchant and traveller who visited India six times between 1630 and 1668. He is most famously associated with his extensive and detailed accounts of India's diamond trade and the Golconda diamond mines of Andhra Pradesh (Kollur mines).Tavernier's accounts in his work Les Six Voyages (Six Voyages, 1676) provide the most comprehensive 17th-century documentation of Indian diamond mines, the gem trade, and the diamonds he purchased. Most significantly, he purchased the legendary Tavernier Blue Diamond (112 3/16 carats) — later sold to King Louis XIV of France, eventually becoming the Hope Diamond (one of the world's most famous diamonds, now in the Smithsonian). He also documented the Koh-i-Noor and other celebrated Indian diamonds.Why other options are incorrect:Option A (Francois Bernier): Bernier (1620-1688) was a French physician and philosopher who visited India during Aurangzeb's reign. His accounts in Travels in the Mughal Empire are valuable for descriptions of Mughal court life, administrative system, and Kashmir — not specifically diamonds and diamond mines.Option C (Jean de Thevenot): Thevenot was a 17th-century French traveller who visited India. His accounts cover general observations about Indian society but are not specifically focused on diamonds and diamond mines.Option D (Abbe Barthelemy Carre): Carre was a French traveller and priest who visited India in the late 17th century. His accounts describe coastal India and Mughal-French trade relations — not diamond mines elaborately.Key Concept: Important foreign travellers to medieval India: Ibn Battuta (14th c., Moroccan) — visited under Muhammad bin Tughlaq; Nicolo Conti (15th c., Italian) — Vijayanagara; Abdur Razzaq (15th c., Persian) — Vijayanagara; Duarte Barbosa (16th c., Portuguese) — coastal India; Babur/Humayun (themselves travellers/rulers); Thomas Roe (17th c., English) — Jahangir's court; Bernier, Tavernier, Thevenot (17th c., French); Manucci (17th c., Italian) — Mughal court. Tavernier is specifically linked to diamonds and gem trade.

Which one of the following foreign travellers elaborately discussed about diamonds and diamond mines of India?

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Which one of the following foreign travellers elaborately discussed about diamonds and diamond mines of India?

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