• Empress K's crown

    Residenz Treasury

    September 3, 2022 in Germany ⋅ ☁️ 72 °F

    aka the Wittelsbach Bling Cache...

    And there was a lot of bling here. In 1565, Duke Albrecht V proclaimed the Wittelsbach treasures should never be sold, and apparently most of them weren't. We got a free audio guide with each admission, so we were in here for a long time. I know more about the Wittelsbach hoard than Smaug did about that big bed of treasure he slept on under the Lonely Mountain.

    Included in the collection is a reliquary of Emperor/ Saint Heinrch II, just the golden box and jewels, the relics are missing, and the crown jewels of Bavaria.

    A piece that really caught my eye: the crown of Empress (later Saint) Kunigunde, wife of HRE Heinrich II. His crown, the one worn by Charlegmagne and every emperor thereafter, is in Vienna, given to the Austrians after WWII by the US government. I won't comment further.
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