Austrian Crown Jewels

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The Imperial Crown, Orb, and Sceptre of Austria

The Austrian Crown Jewels (

Hofburg Palace in Vienna
, Austria.

The most outstanding objects are the insignia of the hereditary

Empire of Austria. They consist of the Imperial Crown, the Imperial Orb and Sceptre, the mantle of the Austrian Empire, and the Coronation Robes of the Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia. The Imperial Crown, Orb, Cross, and Holy Lance of the Holy Roman Empire are also highlights. The first five parts are called the Weltliche Schatzkammer (secular/worldly treasury) and the ecclesiastical part the Geistliche Schatzkammer (spiritual treasury). The Schatzkammer is under the administration of the Kunsthistorisches Museum
(Museum of Fine Arts).

Insignia of the Austrian hereditary homage

Austria began as a small march and was later elevated to a

privileges. However, in this ceremony sovereign
insignia were also used.

The Insignia consist of the Austrian archducal hat or archducal coronet, which was made for Joseph II's entry into Frankfurt for his coronation as King of the Romans in 1764. The orb and the sceptre were in use as the royal insignia of the Kingdom of Bohemia until the early 17th century.

Empire of Austria

Imperial Crown

Among the most important regalia of the Austrian Empire are the following:

The

Nürnberg
and were used only for coronation ceremonies. For all other occasions the emperors had to commission personal crowns, which (except for this one) have survived only in illustrations. This crown was originally the personal crown of emperor Rudolf II. It is one of the most important works of the European goldsmith's art. Luckily this personal crown was spared the fate of many other crowns and not broken up after the death of the emperor in 1612.

The Rudolphian crown has three distinct, principal elements, which symbolise the right to rule: the

King of Bohemia and Hungary), the high arch descending from the imperial crown, and the golden mitre symbolising the divine right
of the emperor to rule. The pearls run in rows like lights. The crown is topped by a bluish-green emerald which symbolises heaven.

Emperor Francis I wearing the Imperial Mantle and regalia

In the four spherical triangles of the golden mitre, Rudolf is depicted in his four principal offices and titles: as victor over the Turks (

Holy Roman emperor in Regensburg (Augustus), his ride up the coronation hill after his coronation as king of Hungary in Pozsony (in modern Slovak "Bratislava", in present-day Slovakia
), and his procession at his coronation as king of Bohemia in Prague. The inscription inside the arch reads: RVDOLPHVS II ROM(ANORVM) IMP(ERATOR) AVGVSTUS HVNG(ARIAE) ET BOH(EMIAE) REX CONSTRVXIT MDCII (tr. "Rudolf II, Roman emperor, King of Hungary and Bohemia, made this in 1602").

The choice and number of the stones used have

Christ
.

Under threat from

emperor Francis II dissolved the thousand-year old Holy Roman Empire and proclaimed the Austrian Empire
on August 11, 1804. He did not use the crown of the Holy Roman Empire but the old crown of Rudolf II as the crown of the new empire.

For more detailed information, see Imperial Crown of Austria.

  • The Imperial Orb and Sceptre (made by
    emperor Matthias
    , the successor to Rudolf II. Both insignia were made out of the same material as the crown, and followed the same concept. They are also partially enameled, and studded with rubies, sapphires and pearls.
  • The Mantle of the Austrian Empire (designed by
    laurel
    leaves.
  • The Coronation Robes of the Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia (also designed by Philipp von Stubenrauch and executed by Johann Fritz in Vienna in 1838) are patterned similar to the Mantle of the Austrian Empire, but made out of blue and orange velvet, with
    fronds
    , oak and laurel leaves.

After Napoleon's downfall and the Congress of Vienna, the Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia was created under Austrian rule. When emperor Ferdinand I was to be crowned King of Lombardy and Venetia in Milan on 6 September 1838, the question arose as to the choice of appropriate insignia and coronation vestments. Only the Iron Crown already existed. The rest of the insignia and vestments had to be newly commissioned. When the Austrians were forced to withdraw from Italy in 1859, the vestments were brought to Vienna.

Habsburg-Lorraine Household Treasure

The Household Treasure contains items from the daily life of the Habsburg monarchs. The collection is vast and only a few highlights are featured regularly.

Cradle of the King of Rome

The Cradle of the King of Rome was commissioned by the city of

Bonaparte dynasty, decorate the sides. The cradle was more a horizontal throne with all its splendour, and a more practical cradle was also commissioned, which is in the Louvre
today.

Crown of Stephen Bocskai, Imperial Treasury, Hofburg Palace, Vienna

Another notable item listed in the Household Treasure is the Crown of

Greek cross
.

More items are:

Holy Roman Empire

Imperial Crown of the Holy Roman Empire, Imperial Treasury, Vienna

The

Franz II
in 1792.

The regalia were normally kept in

Hitler had them sent to Nuremberg
in 1938. After the war they were found by American troops in a bunker and eventually returned in 1946.

The regalia are made up of many pieces, some of which are more than a thousand years old. It is one of the most important and complete collections of medieval royal regalia. Some of the most important items are listed below:

Burgundian Inheritance and Order of the Golden Fleece

Neck Chain of a Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece
  • The Burgundian Inheritance are the items that are still left of the once-immense treasure of the
    rock-crystal
    .
  • The
    Greek myth, according to which Jason and the Argonauts stole the Golden Fleece from Colchis
    .

The collection houses various items of the Order, such as neck chains of the knights, the Potence (Chain of Arms) of the

altars
, etc.

Ecclesiastical Treasury

The Ainkhürn (horn of a unicorn)

The Ecclesiastical Treasury (Geistliche Schatzkammer) contains various pieces such as crosses, altars,

icons
, holy statues, and other items that were used for prayer by the court and the Habsburgs. The collection is vast, so only a limited number of items are on permanent exhibition, the rest are shown in cycles.

  • The Reliquary Cross of King
    True Cross of Christ are said to be preserved under rock-crystal. This reliquary cross used to belong to King Louis of Hungary, and was probably produced either in Hungary or Naples
    , probably between 1370 and 1382.
  • The House Altar of Jasper was made by Ottavio Miseroni in Prague, probably around 1620.
  • The Reliquary with a Nail from the Cross was made in Augsburg in the mid-17th century.
  • The Feather Picture of the Virgin Mary was made by the
    Virgin Mary, made completely out of sparkling Hummingbird and parrot feathers. The Mexican Indian artists from Amentaca were famous for their traditional skills in producing art out of feathers. There are all in all seven feather-pictures in the treasury, making it the largest collection of such specific items. It belonged to the collection of Emperor Rudolf II
    .
  • The Ainkhürn (horn of a unicorn) was originally thought to be the horn of a unicorn and was considered more valuable than gold, since magical healing powers were ascribed to it. The hilt of a sword was made from it, as well as a tankard. In reality, the horn probably came from a Narwhal.
  • The Agate Bowl (Achatschale) is a bowl whose inscriptions are said to refer to Jesus Christ. It was at one time regarded as the Holy Grail.

See also

Hofburg Palace, location of the Schatzkammer

References

Citations
  1. ^ Leithe-Jasper 2004, p. 10.
  2. ^ Trenkler 2004, pp. 132–135.
Bibliography

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Crown jewels of Austria.


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