Editor’s Note
This article explores the remarkable journey of Harry Winston, who rose from humble beginnings to become the legendary “King of Diamonds.” It examines how his keen eye for opportunity and masterful storytelling forever changed the world of high jewelry, transforming stones into icons of glamour and desire.
From a pawnshop emerald to the Hope Diamond, Harry Winston rewrote the rules of jewelry and transformed himself into the “King of Diamonds.”
This is the remarkable journey of a man who turned a pawnshop emerald into a global empire and earned the title the world still remembers him by: “The King of Diamonds.”
Born in 1896 on New York City’s West Side, Harry Winston grew up far from the glamorous salons his name would one day grace. The son of Jewish immigrants from Ukraine, he spent his childhood working in his father Jacob’s small jewelry shop, absorbing every detail of the trade.
At just 12 years old, Winston had his first brush with destiny. Wandering through a pawnshop, he spotted a small green stone tossed into a tray of costume jewelry. The shopkeeper dismissed it as glass, but Harry’s sharp eye told him otherwise. He bought the stone along with another one, so he didn’t arouse suspicion for a mere 25 cents.
Back at his father’s shop, Jacob nearly filed into the stone to “prove” it was worthless, but Harry stopped him just in time. The stone was no trinket; it was a natural emerald. Only two days later, young Winston sold it for $800, roughly $27,000 today.
That moment wasn’t just about profit; it confirmed something deeper. Winston had a natural gift for seeing value where others couldn’t. And he’d spend the rest of his life proving it.
In 1909, the Winston family moved to Los Angeles for his father’s health, reopening their small jewelry store on Figueroa Street. There, the teenage Harry honed his instincts even further. He would carry his father’s wares from saloon to saloon, selling directly to oil prospectors flush with cash from new strikes.