Lectures Royal Fake—A Collection of "Ancient" Gemstones for Prince Poniatowski In 1816, Crown Prince Stanislaw Poniatowski of Poland commissioned a group of gem cutters to engrave 2,611 precious stones with scenes from ancient literature, and in 1830, he proudly published them as genuine examples of "ancient" art. The high quality of these neoclassic miniatures corresponded to the taste of the e..