Jewel__A_Celebration_of_Earth_s_Treasures

CROWN OF CHARLEMAGNE 041

T

he Crown of Charlemagne is

more than a jewelled medieval

masterpiece – between the

10th and 19th centuries,

it symbolized the might of the

Holy Roman Empire, a vast

European state with Germany

at its heart. Later, the crown

became such a powerful icon

that the dictator Adolf Hitler

used it in his campaign to

create a new German-led

empire in Europe in the 1930s.

Also called the Imperial

Crown, or Crown of the Holy Roman

Empire, it is named in honour of the first

Holy Roman Emperor, Charlemagne I

(Charles the Great), king of the Germanic

Frankish tribes (c.747–814 CE). Although

it is widely referred to as the Crown of

Charlemagne, the surviving crown was

probably made for the coronation of

Otto the Great (912–73 CE), while

it is thought that Charlemagne

himself wore a simpler version

for his coronation in 800 CE.

Charlemagne was successful

in conquering and unifying

much of Western Europe and,

after helping to put down a

rebellion against Pope Leo III,

was crowned Holy Roman

Emperor by the grateful pope.

The tradition of imperial rule continued until

1806, when the last Holy Roman Emperor,

Franz II, dismantled the empire after military

defeat by Napoleon. While Napoleon

marched on Franz’s base of Nuremberg,

Franz moved the crown to Vienna

for safekeeping.

Now preserved in the national treasury

in the Hofburg Palace in Vienna as part

of the Austrian crown jewels – where it

is still on public display to visitors – the

Crown of Charlemagne is octagonal

and is made from eight hinged panels

of 22-karat gold. The panels are set with

a dazzling range of 144 precious gems,

including sapphires, emeralds, amethysts,

and more than 100 natural pearls. Typical

of Byzantine jewellery, the stones are

rough cut, because faceting techniques

had not yet been developed. Four of its

panels feature scenes from the Bible

depicted in cloisonné enamel (a form

of painting laced with silver or gold wire),

a technique that was also characteristic

of the Byzantine era.

Crown of

Charlemagne

Key dates

800 CE–1945

900

1400

1750

1850

1900

1950

Holy Roman Emperor^1800

Otto II

△ Front view of the crown

Coronation of Charlemagne by Pope Leo III in 800, shown

in the Grandes Chroniques de France (1375–79) featuring an

earlier version of the crown

Austrian 100-Euro coin

depicting the Crown

of Charlemagne

800 CE Charlemagne is

crowned the first

Holy Roman Emperor

960 CE The crown is

made in a workshop

in the Lower Rhineland

of Germany

1424–1796 The

crown and other

imperial regalia are

kept in Nuremberg

1806 Franz II relinquishes

his title as the last Holy

Roman Emperor

1871 The heraldic

symbol of the German

Empire is created,

inspired by the crown

1938 Nazi forces

invade Austria and

take the crown back

to Nuremberg

1945 At the end

of World War II,

American forces

return the crown

to Austria

962 CE Otto II is appointed

Holy Roman Emperor

and is the first to

wear the crown

1796 The crown

is taken to Vienna to

save it from falling

into Napoleon’s hands

800

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