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25-408: The crown has an unusual design, with vertical fleurs-de-lis standing at the front, back and sides. Made from 22-carat gold and a set of precious 19 sapphires , 30 emeralds , 44 spinels , 20 pearls , 1 ruby , 1 rubellite and 1 aquamarine , it weighs 2,475 g. At the top of the crown is the cross, which reportedly stores a thorn from Christ 's crown of thorns. Unlike in most later crowns,

50-596: A discussion about the question of ownership, at least of the crown jewels, followed in the next few years. The new government's argument was based on the wartime ban on the export of jewels, the Habsburg Law and the legalisation of the Habsburgs' private property by the Saint-Germain Peace Treaty. The demand for restitution was abandoned by the state in 1921. The discussion about the crown jewels came up again in

75-573: A thousand years of European history. The entrance to the treasury is at the Schweizerhof (Swiss Courtyard), the oldest part of the palace, which was rebuilt in the sixteenth century in the Renaissance style under Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I . The Imperial Treasury is affiliated with the Kunsthistorisches Museum , and houses in 21 rooms a collection of rare treasures that were compiled by

100-610: The Baroque era. On 30 October 1918, the provisional National Assembly proclaimed the republic. As a result, on 1 November, by verbal order of Emperor Charles I , jewels were to be removed from the treasury and taken to Switzerland. The Court Office Director ( Hofamtsdirektor ) Wilhelm von Weckbecker, who was responsible for the treasuries, and treasurer Ulreich handed over to the Lord Chamberlain ( Oberstkämmerer ) Count Leopold Berchtold not only Empress Zita 's private jewellery, but also

125-912: The Czech resistance . If not mentioned coronation was held in Prague. 15 June 1086 1158 (?) 6 February 1228 25 December 1261 2 June 1297 26 May 1303 7 February 1311 18 May 1337 Kings and queens crowned with the Crown of Saint Wenceslas (and other crown jewels): 2 September 1347 1 September 1349 28 July 1353 18 June 1363 17 November 1370 13 March 1400 11 February 1437 1 June 1522 24 February 1527 20 November 1562 10 January 1616 4 November 1619 21 November 1627 11 November 1656 8 September 1723 12 September 1791 11 August 1792 12 September 1836 [REDACTED] Media related to Crown jewels of Bohemia at Wikimedia Commons Fleurs-de-lis Too Many Requests If you report this error to

150-560: The Imperial Treasury, Vienna (1637). While the Jewels were stored in Vienna , the original gold orb and sceptre from the 14th century were replaced with current ones. The new orb and sceptre probably originated with an order by Ferdinand I in 1533. Possible reasons for this replacement might be that the originals were simply too austere, and lacked any precious stones. Deemed unrepresentative of

175-667: The Přemyslids dynasty of Bohemia . The jewels should be permanently stored in the chapel of St. Wenceslaus in St. Vitus. They were only lent to Kings, and only on the day of the coronation, and should be returned in the evening that day. After 1918 and the establishment of the Czechoslovak Republic the Coronation Jewels ceased to serve their original function, but remained important as symbols of national independence and statehood. In

200-415: The 10th century, while the hilt is from the 13th century and textiles are probably from the time of Charles IV. The iron blade length is 76 cm, at the widest point is 45 mm and has a ripped hole in a cross shape (45 × 20 mm). The wooden handle is covered with yellow-brown fabric and velvet embroidered with the ornament of laurel twigs with thick silver thread. After coronation ceremonies,

225-492: The 1960s in the course of the "Habsburg Crisis" on the occasion of the return of the heir to the throne Otto von Habsburg to Austria. To this day, the circumstances surrounding the crown jewels is discussed in publications. Several versions of the fate of the jewels exist. The original display case XIII was recently identified again in the Imperial Furniture Collection , as were the empty cases left behind in

250-579: The Habsburg-Lorraine family jewellery from display cases XII and XIII ( Vitrine XIII ) of the Secular Treasury. Packed in two bags Count Berchtold transported the jewels, some in cases, some only wrapped in paper, abroad by train the same night. The documents list 14 precious objects from Empress Zita's private property and 39 objects belonging to the historical Habsburg-Lorraine household treasure, such as orders, crowns, pearls and diamonds. Among

275-505: The House of Habsburg, including jewels and precious stones that due to their unique size could not be fitted into the imperial crowns. Like all secular treasuries, it was designed to attest to the political power and geographical reach of their owners. The ecclesiastical collection contains numerous religious treasures, including relics and objects ascribed to the private ownership of saints. The Imperial Treasury collections were set up from 1556 by

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300-783: The Imperial House of Habsburg over the course of centuries, including the Imperial Crown , Orb, and Sceptre of Austria, and the Imperial Regalia of the Emperors and Kings of the Holy Roman Empire , including the Imperial Crown of the Holy Roman Empire . The Imperial Treasury is divided into two collections: the secular collection and the ecclesiastical collection. The secular collection contains numerous imperial artifacts from

325-501: The Republic has the exclusive right to decide on the display of the crown jewels. An ancient Czech legend says that any usurper who places the crown on his head is doomed to die within a year. This legend is supported by a rumor that Reinhard Heydrich , the Nazi governor of the puppet state Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia secretly wore them, and was assassinated less than a year later by

350-601: The Wikimedia System Administrators, please include the details below. Request from 172.68.168.132 via cp1112 cp1112, Varnish XID 388249125 Upstream caches: cp1112 int Error: 429, Too Many Requests at Fri, 29 Nov 2024 05:50:02 GMT Imperial Treasury, Vienna The Imperial Treasury ( German : Kaiserliche Schatzkammer ) at the Hofburg Palace in Vienna , Austria contains a valuable collection of secular and ecclesiastical treasures covering over

375-614: The advancing French troops under Napoleon . After the Austrian Anschluss of 1938, the Nazi authorities took them back to Nuremberg. At the end of World War II , they were returned to Vienna by the US forces. The display was completely renovated in 1983–1987. The Treasury is divided into two sections - secular and ecclesiastical. The secular museum contains a collection of royal objects: On display are various valuable gems, including one of

400-534: The cross does not stand on a monde . The Royal sceptre is made from 18-carat gold, 4 sapphires, 5 spinels and 62 pearls with an extra large spinel mounted on top of the sceptre; it weighs 1,013 g. The Royal orb is also made from 18-carat gold, 8 sapphires, 6 spinels and 31 pearls. It weighs 780 g and is decorated with wrought relief scenes from the Old Testament and the Book of Genesis . The Coronation robe

425-989: The keys: the President of the Czech Republic , the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies , the President of the Senate , the Prime Minister , the Mayor of Prague , the Archbishop of Prague , and the Dean of the Metropolitan Chapter of St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague, who must all convene to facilitate opening the impenetrable door and coffer. The crown is named and dedicated after the Duke St. Wenceslaus of

450-402: The latter, also known as the "Crown Jewels", were the world-famous " Florentine Diamond ", a 133-carat brilliant from the possession of Franz Stephan of Lorraine, the famous emerald and ruby sets that can be traced back to Maria Theresa , Marie Antoinette and Empress Elisabeth , and the crown of Empress Elisabeth. Numerous reports and arguments about the legality of the removal as well as

475-531: The past, the Jewels were kept in different places, but have been always brought to royal coronations in Prague . Wenceslaus IV (1378–1419) probably moved them to Karlštejn Castle . They were then repeatedly moved for safety reasons: in the 17th century, they were returned to Prague Castle , during the Thirty Years' War (1631) they were sent to a parish church in České Budějovice , and then they were secretly taken to

500-585: The prestige of the Kingdom of Bohemia, it made sense to replace them with an orb and sceptre in an ornate, jeweled style that resembled the crown. The Jewels were brought back to Prague on the occasion of the coronation of Bohemian king Leopold II in 1791. At that time, the current tradition of seven keys was established, though the holders of the keys in the course of time were changed according to political and administrative structures. The jewels were kept in Vienna due to

525-508: The scholar Jacopo Strada , court antiquarian of Ferdinand I . In the eighteenth century, Maria Theresa had the Habsburg treasures moved to its present location, covering up the fact that the dynasty's assets had been largely affected by the expensive wars against rivaling Prussia . The Imperial Regalia arrived in the last days of the Holy Roman Empire around 1800 from Nuremberg , where they had been kept since 1424, in order to save them from

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550-530: The sword was used for the purpose of granting knighthoods . The oldest leather case for the crown was made for Charles IV in 1347. On top are inscribed four symbols: the Imperial eagle, Bohemian lion, the coat of arms of Arnošt of Pardubice and emblem of the Archbishopric of Prague . The door to crown jewels chamber, and likewise the iron safe, is hardly accessible and has seven locks. There are seven holders of

575-510: The threat from the Prussian Army , but were later returned to Prague, arriving in the city on 28 August 1867. According to the ancient tradition and regulations laid down by Charles IV in the 14th century, the Jewels are exhibited only to mark special occasions. Exhibitions can take place only at the Prague Castle. In the 20th century there were nine such moments in history. The President of

600-692: The world's largest emeralds. Part of the treasury are also the crown of the Transylvanian prince Stephen Bocskay and the two "inalienable heirlooms of the House of Austria": a giant narwhal tooth which was thought to be the horn of a unicorn ( Ainkhürn ) and the Agate bowl from Late Antiquity which was thought to be the legendary Holy Grail ; furthermore the Napoleonica artifacts of Napoleon II and his mother Marie Louise . The ecclesiastical collection contains numerous devotional images and altars, mostly from

625-424: Was used from 1653 until 1836. It is made from precious silky red material called "zlatohlav" and is lined with ermine (fur of the stoat). The robe is stored separately from jewelry in a specially air conditioned repository. For the coronation ceremonies, St. Wenceslas' sword , a typical Gothic weapon, was used. The first mention of the sword reported in historical records is in 1333, but the blade dates back to

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