Why is the museum going to show the Hope diamond without its usual setting?

The Hope diamond is one of the largest and most famous jewels in the world. For fifty years, it has been in the collection of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. To mark this anniversary, the museum is showing the forty-five carat blue diamond for the first time without its usual setting. Visitors can now see the Hope diamond in all its natural beauty.
    The Hope diamond has a long and rich history. It was formed over a billion years ago far beneath the Earth’s surface. The stone was discovered in a mine in India during the seventeenth century. It was more than one hundred carats in weight. In 1668, the stone was sold to the ruler of France, King Louis the Fourteenth.
    A few years later, the king’s jeweler recur the stone to a weight of about 67 carats. The stone was later lost during the French Revolution. A recut version of this blue diamond later reappeared in England.
    Different families and jewelry experts have owned the stone over the years. The diamond received its name from one of its 19th century owners, Henry Phillip Hope. A wealthy American woman named Evalyn Walsh McLean bought the Hope diamond in 1911. During her ownership the stone was placed in a setting surrounded by 16 small white diamonds on a long diamond chain.
    Last month, the Smithsonian removed the Hope diamond from this setting. Visitors can see the diamond all by itself, in all its sparkling blue glory. In April, the Hope diamond will temporarily be placed in a new necklace before returning to its original setting. Also in April, the Smithsonian will release a new movie about the diamond’s history.
    The Hope diamond is one of the most visited objects in the museum. Museum organizers say they wanted people to be able to see the famous stone in a new way.