Discover Vienna: The Imperial Treasury at the Hofburg Palace

Austria

by Sanjay (Sergio) Jiandani May 3, 2015 12:40 pm 1,196 views

ESCToday in collaboration with Vienna Tourist Board (Wien.info) will be bringing you a series of articles leading up to the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest in order to showcase and introduce the 2015 Eurovision host city Vienna to our readers. Today we will have a look at the Imperial Treasury at Vienna’s Hofburg Palace.

You will be surely mesmerised and enchated by the crown jewels of the Habsburgs and of the Austrian- Hungarian royal family. The Treasusy is just a stone throw’s away from the other attractions in the Hofburg Palace complex such as the Spanish Riding School, The Sisi Museum, The State Apartments, The Silver Collection and the State Hall at the National Library.

The most important treasury in the world is reason indeed to be amazed. Here, in the oldest part of the Imperial Palace (13th century), you find not only the Emperor’s Crown of the Holy Roman Empire (circa 962) and the Austrian Emperor’s Crown (1602), but also the Burgundian Treasure from the fifteenth century and the Treasure of the Order of the Golden Fleece.

Fascinating treasures from the possessions of the Habsburgs, among them a “unicorn” almost two and a half meters long, are exhibited here together with the crown of Emperor Rudolf II (1552-1612). The orb and scepter, the insignia of the imperial house of Austria, were symbols of might and dignity for centuries. These pieces are set with valuable jewels; they and the intricately worked jewelry are not only witnesses of history, they are also worth a fortune.

The entrance to the Treasuries can be found in the Schweizerhof, whose name is reminiscent of the Swiss Guard that was once posted here.

The Imperial Treasury is located in the Hofburg Palace complex and you can access it via U-Bahn: U1 and U3 and get down at Stephansplatz/ U1 and get down at Herrengasse.

For more information on Vienna you can visit Wien.info and for the latest news on ESC 2015 in Vienna  ORF’s Eurovision website in German.

You can follow our forthcoming series of Discover Vienna articles with photographs and videos on ESCToday.com and on our official Esctoday Instagram and ESCToday Facebook pages.

Stay tuned to ESCToday for the latest news on Vienna, Austria and 2015 Eurovision Song Contest

 

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