Koh-i-Noor

"The transcription reads: 'He who owns this diamond will own the world, but will also know all its misfortunes. Only God, or a woman can wear it with impunity.'"

- Hamid explaining the Koh-i-Noor's cursed legacy, 1839.

The Koh-i-Noor (English: Mountain of Light), or Syamantaka Mani as it was formerly known, was a Piece of Eden in the form of a diamond that held such an immense amount of power that it could bind all of the other Pieces' fates. It was also rumored that only God or women could control its power.

Owners

 * Isu (? – ?)
 * Nāder Shāh (1739 – 1747)
 * Ahmad Shāh Durrānī (1747 – ?)
 * Selim III (? – 1808)
 * Jan van der Graff (1808 – ?)
 * Ranjit Singh (1830 – 1839)
 * Arbaaz Mir (1839)
 * Raza Soora (1839)
 * Pyara Kaur (1839)
 * Hamid (1839 – 1841)
 * William Sleeman and Alexander Burnes (1841)
 * Arbaaz Mir (1841)
 * Ethan Frye (1841 – ?)

History
Having passed through the hands of many dynasties on the Indian subcontinent, the Koh-i-Noor ended up in the possession of Ranjit Singh, the founder of the Sikh Empire, in the early 19th century. Wary of the artifact's curse and its power, Singh decided to hide it in an ancient temple located beneath his summer palace.

It was stolen in the year 1839 by the Assassin Arbaaz Mir and hidden on Raza Soora's person, who later gave it to Singh's granddaughter Pyara Kaur. As Pyara attempted to leave Amritsar's imperial palace after her grandfather's assassination, the princess was set upon by the British Templar Francis Cotton.

To defend her, Raza clawed at Cotton's forehead with his nails, allowing Pyara the time to activate the Piece of Eden. Suddenly possessed by Durga, a member of the Isu, the being gave a statement referring to humanity as "splintered", but that the race was guided through messages left behind by their own across time.

Horrified at the appearance of Durga, Cotton fired multiple shots at the Precursor, though upon striking the Koh-i-Noor with a bullet, the diamond shattered and severed Pyara's connection to the First Civilization woman. As Arbaaz shielded Raza from the blast, the force of the energy's release gave form to a tiger, which brutally savaged Cotton, leading to the latter's demise. After the Koh-i-Noor reconstructed itself, the Piece of Eden ended up in the possession of Hamid, Arbaaz's Mentor.

However, in 1841, Hamid was captured by Templars William Sleeman and Alexander Burnes, who sought to use the Koh-i-Noor to power a Precursor box. Both artifacts were eventually reclaimed by Arbaaz at the Katasraj Temple, but in response, Sleeman laid siege to the summer palace in Amritsar, taking Pyara hostage. During the subsequent confrontation, the Precursor box ended up back in the Templar's hands, but Arbaaz and Pyara were able to escape unharmed with the Koh-i-Noor in their possession. Arbaaz would later hand over the diamond to Ethan Frye, trusting him to keep it safe.

In 1850, a replica of the diamond was confiscated by the British East India Company and became part of the British Crown Jewels when Queen Victoria was proclaimed Empress of India in 1877.

In 2013, after his raid on the Assassin hideout in Mumbai, the Templar Juhani Otso Berg discovered that the Black Cross Albert Bolden somehow came in possession of the Koh-i-Noor at some point during his life. The Order then tried to find one of his descendants to learn more about the 1920s Templar and the artifact's location.

Precursor statement
"We are one of many but essential to the unity of all. Splintered though we may appear within the limited notion of this moment, we exist as one, as we always have and always will. You have been fragmented, children, but know that you are also whole. Do not allow your concept of time to act as a paralyzing veil when the fate of all you hold dear rests in your hands. We speak through this vessel to you, this time and medium and anchor that we might commune. We must exist freely at all points for your race, our children, to exist and to remain free. Shroud this intelligent lens until you become united and can realize this heart, our heart, to be the one that endowed your precious breath. And never doubt the lengths to which we will go to protect what is precious to us."

- Pyara Kaur possessed by Durga, 1839.

Trivia

 * At the end of Assassin's Creed: Brahman, Jot Soora is shown giving a diamond engagement ring to Monima Das as a reference to the Koh-i-Noor. However, Karl Kerschl, one of the comic's writers, confirmed the objects are unrelated.