Crown of Saint Wenceslas
Crown of Saint Wenceslas | |
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Heraldic depictions | |
Details | |
Country | Kingdom of Bohemia |
Made | 1346 |
The crown of Saint Wenceslas (
Description
The St. Wenceslas Crown is made of 21 to 22 carat (88 to 92%)
The crown has two hoops and an upstanding cross at the point of intersection. There is no monde; the cross stands directly on the crown. It weighs two and a half kilograms. The sapphire cross has an inset cameo in which the scene of the Crucifixion is cut.[2]
Location
Unlike many other European royal treasures, the St. Wenceslas Crown is not normally displayed to the public, and only a replica is shown. Along with the other Bohemian crown jewels, it is kept in a chamber within St. Vitus Cathedral accessible by a door in the
Legend
An old Czech legend says that any usurper who places the crown on his head is doomed to die a violent death within a year, as the Crown is the personal property of
In November 1945, a rumor held that the crown had been stolen by Heydrich and sold in Germany, and that the version recovered in Prague after the end of World War II was in fact a forgery.[4]
See also
References
- ^ "Gemmological study of the St. Wenceslas crown in Prague - české korunovační klenoty". www.korunovacni-klenoty.cz. Archived from the original on 2016-09-11.
- ^ Svoboda, Alois (1965). Prague. Translated by Finlayson-Samsour, Roberta. Sportovní a Turistické Nakladatelství. p. 72.
- ^ Klíče od fascinujících klenotů
- ISBN 978-1-78920-285-4.
The tale of the 'imitation Crown of St Wenceslas', which did the rounds in November 1945, is symbolic of the actual and felt subjugation and plundering of Bohemia and Moravia by the Germans. The story was that the government in Prague had established that the Nazis had stolen the most precious historical regalia from St Vitus Cathedral. Heydrich, it was said, had had the Crown of St Wenceslas and the crown jewels taken to Germany and sold. Forgeries had been brought to Prague to replace them; following Heydrich's death, the proceeds of the sale had ended up in the pockets of his successor, Karl Hermann Frank