Library

One wing of the Hofburg contains the Imperial (now National) Library. Right up there with the Schatzkammer; I was bowled over, magnificent...

USA 250

 As we celebrate the Semiquincentennial,

250 years of our glorious Republic,

Americans young and old, rich and poor,

of every racial and social background,

gaze upon the Stars & Stripes

with one and only one thought

burning in their minds and hearts:

  

The Imperial Treasury (Schatzkammer)

A specific bucket-list item on the Viennese agenda was the Imperial Treasury, Schatzkammer in German, which holds the crown jewels of the Holy Roman and Austrian Empires. Though not as large and flashy as the jewels in the Tower of London, the Austrian collection has age and rarity going for it, and its historic pedigree is what makes it unique and venerable. The oldest pieces go back to the 8th & 9th centuries, the "Crown of Charlemagne" is dated to around 960, the Imperial coronation vestments were crafted in the 12th-13th centuries.  By contrast, most of the British collection dates from around 1660 when Charles II ascended the throne, and was vastly expanded in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The medieval and Tudor regalia had either been sold or melted down after the monarchy was abolished in 1649 during the English Civil War. 

the entrance

Coronation Regalia of the Holy Roman Empire

The Austrian Regalia 

 

assorted other goodies

the cradle of Napoleon's son (his mother was a Habsburg)

used for in-palace baptisms

yes, that's just one big emerald

another emerald, I believe

agate bowl from Constantinople, 300-400AD

bishop's crosier, staff is a narwhal tusk

orders and scepters of Emperor Maximilian of Mexico
(it did not end well)

Flower Shadows