Imperial Crown of Austria

The Crown of the Austrian Empire (German: Österreichische Kaiserkrone or Krone des Kaisertums Österreich) was originally the personal crown of emperor Rudolf II. It is therefore also known as the Crown of Rudolf II, or the Crown of the Austrian Empire.

History

Since the Imperial Regalia of the Holy Roman Empire, including the Imperial Crown, were kept in Nuremberg and could only leave the city for a coronation, some rulers had their own personal crowns made. For example, when they attended a session of the Imperial Diet (Reichstag), they attended with their own crowns. The oldest depiction of such a private crown is an etching by the artist Albrecht Dürer of Emperor Maximilian I, where a depiction of a crown is seen that might have later influenced the appearance of the crown of Rudolf II.

The Imperial Crown of the Habsburg Empire of Austria was never used for a coronation, since, unlike the Holy Roman Empire, it was a hereditary monarchy and such an act of legitimization was not seen as necessary. The ceremony held was an act of investiture to mark the monarch's official ascension to the throne rather than a coronation.

The crown of Rudolf II was made in 1602 in Prague by Jan Vermeyen, one of the most outstanding goldsmiths of his time, who was called specially from Antwerp. The crown is made out of three parts: the circlet (Kronreif), the high arch (Kronbügel), and a mitre (Mitra).

In the earlier forms of the Western mitre the peaks or ‘horns’ were over the ears, rather than over the face and back of the head. The form of mitre used in the imperial mitral crown preserved this earlier form. This form of the imperial mitre-crown can be seen in the extant portraits of such emperors as Frederick III [1][2] and Maximilian I [3] The bronze effigy of Maximilian I found on his monumental cenotaph in the court church in Innsbruck [4] has a crown with two arches which cross over the top of the mitre and the unique form of the imperial crown adopted by Maximilian as Emperor of Mexico File:X-Large Portrait of Maximiliano.jpg[5] appears to have been modeled on this form, but with the half-arches and the eagles on the circlet on the front, back and sides of the imperial crown of Napoleon III.[6] In the later 17th century Baroque form of mitral crown of Leopold I File:Kaiser-Leopold1.jpg[7] the peaks of the mitre have been rounded into the hemispherical form Peter the Great would adopt as the Imperial Crown of Russia when he took the title emperor as Russian sovereign.

Although it is often assumed that the Imperial Crown made for Otto I with its single arch over its inner red cap was the original prototype for the western imperial crown, it is also possible that the Byzantine imperial crown, which in the twelfth century also became closed with two arches, inspired the western emperors to follow their example and also close their crowns with such a pair of arches.

Circlet

The circlet forms a crown in itself and symbolises the royal authority. Out of it rise eight lilies, which were probably inspired by the Bohemian Crown of St. Wenceslas. The lilies are also sometimes associated with the fleurs-de-lis of the Valois. The use of eight elements was also taken from the Imperial Crown of the Holy Roman Empire, which includes a circlet made out of eight plates. In the circlet are precious stones such as spinels, zircons, and pearls. The zircons are cut in such a way that they are flat at the front. Preparing precious stones for mounting in this way was a relatively new technique at the time the crown was made.

Mitre

The mitre symbolises the divine right to rule, and the spiritual position of the emperor, who during coronation was consecrated symbolically as a deacon. The mitre fills the left and right and is open in the middle where the high arch passes. The mitre is made of gold, with a band of enamel work depicting birds and plants. The mitre is divided into four sections representing the high honours of Rudolf II. The first part shows him kneeling, while receiving the Imperial Crown of the Holy Roman Empire in Regensburg as Holy Roman Emperor. The second shows him riding onto the coronation hill in Pressburg (Bratislava) during his coronation as King of Hungary. The third shows his coronation procession through Prague as King of Bohemia, and the fourth depicts an allegory of his victory over the invading Turks. The inscription inside the arch reads in Latin: RVDOLPHVS II ROM(ANORVM) IMP(ERATOR) AVGVSTUS HVNG(ARIAE) ET BOH(EMIAE) REX CONSTRVXIT MDCII (Rudolf II, August Emperor of the Romans, King of Hungary and Bohemia, Constructed in 1602).

High Arch

The high arch was obviously inspired by the arch of the Imperial Crown of the Holy Roman Empire. It rises from the front and back of the circlet and is studded with eight diamonds, which symbolise Christ. The emperor was regarded as governor on earth in the name of Christ. At the top of the arch is a blue-green emerald, which symbolises heaven. The emerald was not cut, but polished.

Sceptre and Imperial Orb

Also associated with the crown are a sceptre and the Imperial Orb, which was commissioned in 1612 by Rudolf's brother and successor Matthias. It was created by Andreas Ochsenbruck. The shape takes its inspiration from the crown, especially the enamel-work which is in the same style. A peculiarity of the sceptre is that it is made partly out of "unicorn horn". The sceptre and the orb were already in use before proclamation of the Empire of Austria, as Bohemian royal regalia and for the hereditary private estates (Erbhuldigung) of the Archduchy of Austria.

Crown, sceptre, and orb are kept today in the Schatzkammer (Vienna), the Imperial Treasury in the Hofburg Palace.

Other uses

• A number of beer companies feature the Imperial Crown on their logo, such as the Royal Brewery of Krušovice (cs: Královský Pivovar Krušovice) in the Czech Republic.
• Some cities have their coat of arms crowned by the Imperial Crown. Amsterdam, was granted its coat of arms to be crowned by emperor Maximilian I in 1489 in recognition of its financial support for one of his wars. The crown can be seen on the spire of Westerkerk and adorning the Blauwbrug.

See also

• Austrian Crown Jewels
• Archducal hat
• Ducal hat
• Holy Crown of Hungary
• Imperial crown

Literature

• Leithe-Jasper, Manfred. The Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna: The Imperial And Ecclesiastical Treasury. Scala Publisher. 2005. ISBN 978-3-406-42938-5

External links

Media related to [//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Imperial_Crown_of_Austria Imperial Crown of Austria] at Wikimedia Commons

• Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna | Crown of the Austrian Empire