CROWN OF ST WENCESLAS
Press Release
on the permanent exhibition
CROWN OF ST WENCESLAS
Municipal House Gold Coins shop, náměstí Republiky 5, Prague 1
open Monday – Friday 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. upon a written reservation
For more information and reservations, please contact the Culture and Information Centre, tel.: 222 002 101,
.
CLOSED on April 9, 2012
The crown of St Wenceslas is the most important and oldest of the Bohemian crown jewels. It was commissioned by Charles IV in the 1340s and dedicated to St Wenceslas. The original crown is kept at Prague Castle. Unlike many European countries, this symbol of Czech autonomy and statehood is not permanently exhibited. By declaration of the Roman Emperor and King of Bohemia, Charles IV, it was deposited in a special chamber in St. Vitus’ Cathedral near the remains of the country’s patron saint and under his symbolic protection. The Bohemian coronation jewels would only be exhibited on special occasions and only on Prague Castle premises.
The Municipal House is situated next to the Powder Gate on the former grounds of the Royal Palace, the magnificent seat of the Bohemian kings from 1383 to 1484. The modern-day Municipal House, erected in 1906–1911, witnessed the proclamation of Czechoslovak independence on October 28, 1918.
It is thus symbolic that the Municipal House management decided to initiate the creation of a copy of the royal crown of St Wenceslas and exhibit it permanently in the Bohemian and Gentlemen’s Club, where important historical events marking the origin of the modern Czech statehood took place. The copy of the crown of St Wenceslas was commissioned by the Gold Coins – Numismatics company.
The copy of St Wenceslas crown was crafted by Jiří Urban, a famous goldsmith from Turnov. Painter Václav Zajíc, head of the department of precious stone cutting and engraving department of the Secondary School of Applied Arts in Trutnov, supplied the glass replicas and compositions of the precious stones.
The copy of the crown of St Wenceslas, a symbol of the Czech state’s independence, is also featured on the CZK 1 coin, which also represents the value as well as independence of the Czech currency. Both “crowns” symbolize the independence and sovereignty of the Czech state and its representatives.
The copy of crown of St Wenceslas, as well as a CZK 1 coin made of pure gold are on a permanent display in the Municipal House.
Presented by the Municipal House and Gold Coins – Numismatics
About the crown:
The crown of St Wenceslas – made of high fineness gold (21 – 22 carats), decorated with precious stones and pearls – is the oldest of the crown jewels. It weighs almost two and a half kilograms, it is 19 cm high, including the cross, 19 cm in diameter and each of the four parts of the crown is 14.5 cm long. It was commissioned by Charles IV for his coronation in 1347, who later dedicated it to the first patron saint of the Czech lands, St Wenceslas, and decreed that it become a state crown, used for coronation of further Bohemian kings, his successors to the Bohemian throne. Charles IV kept modifying it, having it fitted with the most precious stones he managed to acquire, almost until the end of his life (1378), gradually developing into its contemporary look.
Its shape follows the tradition of previous crowns of the Přemyslids as well as kings of France. It is a headdress consisting of four parts, each of which culminates with a large fleur-de-lis. The segments are linked by two bands arching over the top, mounted with ornaments from an older jewel (headdress or band). The apex of the crown, where the two bans cross, features a gold cross with a sapphire cameo, an engraved precious stone. The crown contains a total of 19 sapphires, 44 spinels, 1 ruby, 30 emeralds and 20 pearls.
Charles IV decreed that the new royal crown be permanently held in St Vitus’ Cathedral. Nevertheless, Charles’ very first successor, his son Wenceslas IV evidently at the beginning of the 15th century had the crown jewels transferred to the Karlštejn castle, where they were to be better secured during the tumultuous times of fighting for rule of the country. Since then, they have been kept in many different places, with the transfers happening mainly during political unrest, fights over the Bohemian throne and the threat of war. The turbulent 17th century prepared a dramatic fate for the crown jewels. The place where they were kept changed often, for a time returning to St Vitus’ Cathedral, then being transferred to the office of the Tables of the Province and later to Prague’s Old Town City Hall. During the periods when Prague was no longer safe, they were securely stored in České Budějovice. The ruling Habsburg dynasty designated a more permanent location in Vienna, where they stayed almost until the end of the 18th century. Irrespective of where they were stored, be it the Karlštejn Castle or Vienna, they were always brought for the royal coronation to the Czech lands, or more specifically to Prague Castle.
The official name of the medieval Bohemian state was also derived from the crown of St Wenceslas – the Crown of Bohemian Kingdom or Bohemian Crown (the union of crown lands, which were part of the Bohemian kingdom and were subject to the King of Bohemia).
The new copy of the crown of St Wenceslas is only the second copy to be made. The first replica was made fifty years ago for exhibition purposes and is owned by the Prague Castle Administration.
Admission:
full: CZK 65, family: CZK 105 (max. 2 adults and 2 children under 18); reduced: CZK 35 (holders of ZTP, ZTP/P cards, youths between 10-18 years, high-school and university students under 26, elementary and middle school pupils without official accompaniment); group: CZK 21 (groups of elementary, middle or high school children accompanied by a teacher), CZK 1: children under 10 accompanied by their parents, teachers at elementary, middle and high schools and universities when accompanying a group of students, journalists.
Information and tickets:
Culture and Information Centre of the Municipal House, nám. Republiky 5, 111 21 Prague 1
tel.: 222 002 101, fax: 222 002 100, e-mail: info@obecnidum.cz, www.obecnidum.cz
Contact person for journalists: Pavel Trtík, tel.: 603 846 219, trtik@Zlate-Mince.cz
