Austrian Crown Jewels

The collective term Austrian Crown Jewels or insignia (German: Insignien und Kleinodien) denotes the regalia and vestments worn by the Holy Roman emperor, and later the Austrian emperor, during the coronation ceremony and at various other state functions. The term refers to the following objects: the crowns, sceptres, orbs, swords, rings, crosses, holy relics, and the royal robes, as well as several other objects connected with the ceremony itself.

The Austrian Crown Jewels are for the most part kept at the Schatzkammer (Imperial Treasury), located in the Hofburg Palace in Vienna. They are a collection of imperial and royal regalia and jewels dating from the 10th century to the 19th. They are one of the biggest and most important collections of royal objects still in existence, and reflect more than a thousand years of European history. The treasury can be quantified into six important parts:

• The Insignia of the Austrian Hereditary Homage
• The Empire of Austria
• The Habsburg-Lorraine Household Treasure
• The Holy Roman Empire
• The Burgundian Inheritance and the Order of the Golden Fleece
• The Ecclesiastical Treasury

The most outstanding objects are the insignia of the hereditary Empire of Austria. They consist of the Imperial Crown, the Imperial Orb and the mantle of the Austrian Empire, and the Coronation Robes of the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia. The Imperial Crown, Orb, Cross, and Holy Lance of the Holy Roman Empire are also highlights. The first five parts are also called Weltliche Schatzkammer (secular/worldly treasury) and the ecclesiastical part the Geistliche Schatzkammer (spiritual treasury). The Schatzkammer is under the administration of the Kunsthistorisches Museum (Museum of Art History).