Great crown of the Russian empire. The secret of the crown of the Russian empire
Large imperial crown
The crown is a masterpiece of world jewelry art.
The imperial crown was made by the court jeweler Georg Friedrich Eckart and the diamond master Jeremiah Pozier for the coronation of Empress Catherine II the Great in 1762. The crown was created in record time - in just two months.
The work on the creation of the crown was supervised by the jeweler G.-F. Eckart. He created the sketch and wireframe. I. Pozier was involved in the selection of diamonds.
The unique piece of jewelry was restored in 1984. Chief artist V.G. Sitnikov, jewelers - V.V. Nikolaev, G.F. Aleksakhin.
Silver, diamonds, pearls, spinel rubies
State Historical and Cultural Museum-Reserve "Moscow Kremlin"
Moscow, Russia
Large Imperial Crown, created by the court jeweler for the coronation of Catherine II. Traditional in shape, the crown consists of two opening hemispheres, surmounted by an orb and a cross.
Used materials - silver, gold, diamonds, pearls, spinel.
The craftsmen set 4936 diamonds weighing 2858 carats in silver. The sparkling diamond lace is accentuated by two rows of large matte pearls, 75 in total.
The height of the crown with the cross is 27.5 cm. The length of the lower circumference is 64 cm.
The weight of the crown is 1993.80 grams.
The crown is crowned with a rare gemstone of bright red color - a noble spinel of 398.72 carats.
The great imperial crown, made in 1762 for the coronation of Empress Catherine II the Great by the talented court jeweler Jeremiah Pozier, amazes with the perfection of execution and luxury. An excellent craftsman, he managed to create a "hymn to the diamond in the diamond age." It is no coincidence that the Russian crown occupies an exceptional position among the European regalia. Traditional in form, consisting of two openwork silver hemispheres, separated by a garland and fastened with a low crown, entirely adorned with diamonds and pearls, the crown creates an impression of solemn grandeur, surprising at the same time with its lightness and grace. &
Graceful and at the same time unusually calm, laurel branches are a symbol of power and glory, as if covering a diamond-shaped diamond grid of hemispheres and fastened with a diamond in the center. &
The master emphasized the sparkle of diamond lace with two rows of large matte perfectly clean pearls. In the drawing of a garland of large white and pink diamonds, oak leaves and acorns are placed between the hemispheres, which symbolizes the strength and strength of power.
The crown is crowned with a rare gemstone of dark red color - noble spinel (398.72 carats, acquired in the 17th century from oriental merchants). It is also one of the seven historical stones of the Diamond Fund of Russia.
Ekaterina was pleased with the work. She kept this almost two-kilogram crown on her head for all the necessary time of the coronation ceremony - several hours.
After Catherine II, all emperors in Russia were crowned with a large imperial crown.
The Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire is the main symbol of the power of the Russian monarchs. Imperial regalia from 1762 to 1917
Catherine II with coronation regalia. The Empress holds a Scepter in her right hand. Portrait of Alexei Antropov 1765
SCEPTER IMPERIAL
Gold, diamond "Orlov", diamonds, silver, enamel
Length 59.5 cm
Early 1770s
The smoothly polished gold surface of the scepter is intercepted by eight diamond bezels, and the handle is embossed with flutes (vertical grooves) that enhance the play of light and shadow. The scepter ends with a cast gold double-headed eagle, decorated with black enamel and diamonds. The splendor of this emblem of Manarchist power was greatly enhanced by the Orlov diamond that adorned the scepter in 1774. According to experts, this is the best diamond of all the famous. As you know, he was the "eye" of the golden statue of Brahma in the Indian temple. This is one of the seven historical stones of the Diamond Fund of the Russian Federation.
In ancient times, the scepter was considered an attribute of the power of Zeus (Jupiter). In Old Russia, the image of the scepter can be found on the ancient coins of the princes Vladimir and Yaroslav of the beginning of the 11th century. The scepter as a regalia is also mentioned in the Russian chronicles of the middle of the 13th century, telling about the arrival of Western ambassadors. It is believed, however, that the scepter was introduced into use under Ivan the Severe at the end of his conquest of the Kazan Khanate. With all this, Ivan IV seems to have inherited the position of the khan, who in Russia was called the tsar. To materialize the claims to this title, which for a long time and stubbornly refused to recognize, so to speak, both in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and in the Crown of Poland, there must be a scepter. Peter the Great also attached particular symbolic significance to the scepter. During the coronation of his own wife, Catherine I, he never let go of him for a second. Peter I did not have the rest of the imperial regalia. The imperial scepter, which is in the Diamond Fund, is adorned with the world famous Orlov diamond cut in the form of the highest Indian rose. According to, as everyone knows, one of the legends, this stone belonged to Nadir Shah. At the end of its fall, the diamond got to Amsterdam, where it was bought for 400 thousand rubles by Count Grigory Orlov and presented to them by Empress Catherine II.
DIAMOND "ORLOV"
Empress Catherine II loved to pay with diamonds when playing cards. “How fun it is to play diamonds! It looks like a thousand and one nights! " - she exclaimed in one of the letters. She presented her favorite Grigory Orlov with a diamond jacket worth a million rubles. Orlov did not remain in debt and presented the queen with a diamond weighing 189.62 carats for the imperial scepter. &
The rarest in purity, with a bluish-green tint, the diamond was found in the 16th century in the mines of Golconda (India). Initially, the stone was a fragment from a larger crystal, presumably the mysteriously disappeared Great Mogul diamond, and in its raw form was 450 carats (90 g). The first name of the diamond is “Derianur”, or “Sea of Light” (the second fragment of “Mogul” was the no less famous “Kohinoor”, or “Mountain of Light”). According to ancient legend, both stones were the eyes of the temple statue of Brahma. First, the diamond was cut in the form of a "tall rose" (about 180 facets) weighing 300 carats. Shah Jehan was dissatisfied with the cut and ordered the stone to be cut. &
After that, the diamond took on its modern shape, but its weight dropped to 200 carats (or 40 grams). The Persian Shah Nadir, having seized Delhi in 1739, decorated his throne with them. When the British "visited" Persia, they appropriated the "stones" in the same way. "Derianur" by unknown means got to the Amsterdam bank in 1767, changing its name to "Amsterdam", and the owner was either an Armenian or a Jew Grigory Safras. In 1772 he sold the diamond to his relative, the Russian court jeweler Ivan Lazarev (hence the third name of the stone - "Lazarev"). Lazarev, in turn, in 1773 sold the stone for 400,000 rubles to Count Orlov, in whose hands the stone acquired its final name, with which it went down in history and was presented on the name day to Catherine II instead of a bouquet. She appreciated the gift and placed it on the crown of her golden scepter (below the pommel, which is a two-headed eagle, decorated with black enamel and diamonds), multiplying its magnificence.
POWER IMPERIAL
Gold, diamonds, sapphire (200 carats), diamond (46.92 carats), silver
Height with cross 24 cm
Ball circumference 48 cm
1762 year
When preparing for the coronation of Catherine II, only two weeks before the significant event, they remembered the state, and then it turned out that the precious stones from the empress Elizabeth Petrovna's state had long been removed, and the gold was "put into action." In an unusually short time, the court jeweler G.-F. The new power was executed by Eckart.
In the form of a small ball with an impeccably polished gold surface, on a low profiled base, the orb gave the impression of a luxurious product thanks to a diamond-studded belt and a half-hoop with a cross at the top. These diamond garlands are taken directly from Catherine's dress, to which they were attached with silver loops invisible to visitors.
In the early 70s of the 18th century, the state was decorated with two stones, which changed its general appearance.
Between the openwork diamond cross and the half-hoop, a huge sapphire weighing 200 carats was placed surrounded by diamonds, and at the junction of the half-hoop with the belt - a large diamond weighing 46.92 carats, a completely pure stone with a bluish tint.
LARGE AGRAPH BUCKLE
Diamonds silver
Length 25 cm, width from 8 to 11 cm
1750s. Master I. Pozier
Among the items created by the Swiss Jeremiah Pozier for the Russian court is a luxurious agraph buckle 25 centimeters long.
Heavy gold, ermine-lined coronation robes on the days of celebrations were fastened with huge elegant buckles, designed primarily for visual effect.
A subtle sense of decorativeness helped the jeweler to create a buckle, unusual in shape, fabulous in wealth.
It is made in the form of a bow of three lush branches, studded with diamonds. The intertwining branches are massive, but at the same time create the impression of lightness - due to the fact that small flowers on thin stems are scattered among the juicy leaves.
Careful thoughtfulness of every detail of the design of the product, free composition, combination of diamonds of different quality - all this characterizes the style of I. Pozier, the best of the best "diamond makers" of the 18th century.
The buckle was at one time worn by Elizaveta Petrovna, and then it in turn belonged to other Russian rulers, becoming a fastener on the coronation ermine mantle.
SMALL IMPERIAL CROWN
Diamonds, silver
Height with cross 13 cm
1801 Craftsmen J. Duval and J. Duval
Traditional in form, the small imperial crown was made by the Duval brothers, famous court jewelers, in 1801 for the coronation of Empress Elizabeth Alekseevna.
The severity and sense of proportion distinguish the work of these masters. Their style is clean, logical, reasonable, and their execution is such that it makes you forget about technical techniques and see only the beauty of the material with which they work.
Everything in the crown is amazingly proportional and balanced. The shine of diamond lace in a silver frame conveys a sense of solemnity, significance, grandeur, despite the miniature size of the product.
Among the excellent stones on the crown, a number of large diamonds on the crown, as if hanging in the air, stand out for their purity and size. The beauty of the stones, the refined jewelry craftsmanship, undoubtedly, bring the small crown closer to the large imperial crown of Catherine II.
Coronation regalia of Russian emperors. In the foreground - the Imperial State 1856
Great imperial crown among the regalia of Russian emperors.
Catherine II (1762)
Virgilius Eriksen. Empress Catherine II in the Great Imperial Crown
Paul I (1797)
Borovikovsky V.L. Emperor Paul I in the Great Imperial Crown
The last time the Great Imperial Crown was used in state events was in 1906 - at the opening ceremony of the first State Duma with the participation of the last Emperor Nicholas II. Currently, the imperial regalia is in the Diamond Fund of the Russian Federation.
Large imperial crown
The main symbol of the power of Russian monarchs, the large imperial crown of the Russian Empire, ordered by Catherine II the Great for coronation in 1762, was created according to a sketch by the court jeweler Georg Friedrich Eckart and diamond crafts by master Jeremy Pozier (1716-1779), in just two months ...
The large imperial crown is made in the form of a headdress with an unusually graceful shape and well-found proportions - this is all merit Georg Friedrich Eckart.
Diamond Master Eremey Petrovich Pozie engaged in the selection of diamonds and gems for this jewelry miracle. The task turned out to be far from easy - the master set 4936 diamonds weighing 2858 carats in silver. Jeweler Pozier brought out the beauty of stones, very skillfully used the mesmerizing shimmering of diamonds, the play of gems, combined with the matte tranquility of pearls.
The sparkling diamond lace is accentuated by two rows of large matte pearls, 75 in total, weighing 763 carats. The crown is crowned with a rare gemstone of bright red color - a noble Ruby Spinel with a size of 398.72 carats. The famous ruby from the crown of Elizabeth Petrovna, the same ruby that Nikolai Spafari, a member of the Russian delegation to China, acquired from the Chinese Emperor Kangxi in 1676, a prominent Russian diplomat and politician.
The Empress set one condition - the weight of the crown should not exceed 5 pounds (or 2.27 kg)
The height of the Great Imperial Crown with a cross is 27.5 cm. The length of the lower circumference is 64 cm. The weight of the crown is 1993.80 grams.
The majestic crown design is not only beautiful, but also filled with deep meaning, the imperial crown is made up of two silver hemispheres, personifying the connection of East and West on the territory of the Russian Empire.
From below, the grid of hemispheres is covered by laurel branches - a symbol of power and glory, and in the drawing of a garland between the hemispheres are placed oak leaves and acorns, symbolizing the strength and inviolability of power.
The great imperial crown of the Russian Empire was used as an imperial regalia from 1762 to 1917, all emperors of Russia after 1762 were crowned with this crown:
Catherine II (1762)
Peter III (1797 posthumously crowned by Paul I)
Paul I (1797)
Alexander I (1801)
Nicholas I (1826)
Alexander II (1855)
Alexander III (1883)
Nicholas II (1896).
By the decree of Peter I, for the storage of especially valuable things belonging to the state, in 1719 the Diamond Room where ceremonial jewelry was kept, and insignia and other state regalia, which were used by monarchs during coronation and other important solemn state ceremonies.
Last time the Great Imperial Crown was used by the last emperor of Russia Nicholas II in 1906 at the opening ceremony of the first State Duma.
After the October Revolution in 1922, all the values and regalia of the imperial power were transferred to the Gokhran of Russia. The Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire served as collateral against cash loans of $ 25,000 for the state treasury. The main pledger was the Irish Finance Minister Michael Collins, and the Great Imperial Crown was kept in the house of the Irish Ambassador Harry Boland until 1938.
In 1948, the new Irish government wanted to sell all the collateralized royal jewels of Russia at an auction in London. However, after long consultations with the Soviet ambassador, it was decided to return all the relics to their homeland, in exchange for $ 25,000.
The Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire was returned to Russia in 1950 after following the loan repayment procedure and is kept in the Diamond Fund of the Russian Federation, where all Russian history relics, jewelry pieces, precious stones and nuggets are collected and stored.
Since 1967, the imperial crown has been exhibited for viewing in one of the halls of the Diamond Fund of Russia in the Museum of the Moscow Kremlin, where a component part Gokhran Foundation Russia.
This unique piece of jewelry was restored in 1984. Used materials - silver, gold, diamonds, pearls, spinel.
In 2012, the Smolensk Diamonds company created a copy of the Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire.
In January, the world press exploded with another sensation related to the secret disappearance of the treasures of the last Russian tsar. It seems that the symbol of royal power must be sought in the Gobi Desert.
As you know, the Great Imperial crown of the Russian Empire was used for the coronation of tsars, starting with Peter I, and replaced the Monomakh hat, which was used by Russian tsars and grand dukes (with it, we note, historians also have a lot of ambiguities). The last Emperor Nicholas II was also crowned with the Great Imperial Crown. The last version of the crown was made by order of Empress Catherine II for her coronation. Today the crown is on display at the Moscow Kremlin's Diamond Fund.
The new version of the Americans, of course, could be neglected. If there were not a huge number of mysteries around the treasures of the last Russian tsar, which historians have not been able to uncover to this day.
Americans: The Crown of the Russian Empire - in the Gobi
So, in January, the Los Angeles Times published the story of US resident Patt Barham, who is confident that the crown and other jewels of Russian emperors are buried in the Gobi Desert. Barham has been rotating among the elite of Los Angeles for 80 years. She was also a correspondent during the Korean War and co-authored books about the mysterious deaths of Marilyn Monroe and Grigory Rasputin.
"Diamonds, Faberge eggs, crowns and diadems of Russian emperors, precious-encrusted gold frames, pearl, ruby, sapphire and diamond necklaces are hidden in seven coffins in a 7x10-foot pit in the middle of the Mongolian deserts," Barhem says.
All this, according to her, on October 3, 1917, was buried there by her stepfather - the former Russian prince Georgy Meskhi-Gleboff. He talked about the treasure often after he came to the United States and married his mother, Patt Barham, who was the heiress of the silver mines. Shortly before her death in 1960, Patt said, her stepfather handed her a sealed envelope with a drawn map that indicated the exact location of the treasure. But he asked not to do anything until the Russian government recognizes the execution of the Romanov family and arranges an official funeral for the murdered (which happened in 1998). But the map soon mysteriously disappeared, although Barham claims that she remembered the coordinates of the treasure, since at one time she personally copied the document for her stepfather.
Now Barchem plans to find the treasures and return them to the Russian people. She says, according to her stepfather, that he was an assistant to the custodian of the imperial treasury, and on February 28, 1917, Tsarina Alexandra instructed him to take the personal valuables of the Romanovs to a bank in Beijing. “The valuables were hidden in 7 coffins, and in two, for cover, there were also the dead bodies of children who were transported to China for burial,” says Barhem, referring to Meskhi-Gleboff's diary. In the Gobi desert, robbers attacked the caravan. Meskhi-Gleboff repulsed the attack, but decided not to risk it anymore and buried the treasure on the spot. A year later, he moved to the United States. According to Barhem, in the 1930s, he and her mother equipped an expedition, spending $ 300,000 on training, but the authorities did not let them go beyond Turkey.
Barchem herself came to believe in the treasure after she became closely acquainted with Rasputin's daughter Maria Grigorievna, with whom she wrote a cookbook and a story about her father. Maria told Patt that the queen, in her presence, instructed Meskhi-Gleboff to take the treasures to Beijing. In 1999, Barham herself tried to organize an expedition to the Gobi, but there were problems with funding.
As for the missing card, it is hidden in the coffin of Meskhi-Gleboff himself, buried in the Hollywood Forever cemetery, says Barham. But he also does not exclude the possibility that the card accidentally fell into a heap of papers from the family archive, donated to some educational institution.
Barchem herself is confident that she can find out the desired place from a bird's eye view, since her stepfather's map exactly matched the topographic map of Mongolia from 1912. The American plans to fly over the desert by helicopter, fix the GPS coordinates of the alleged treasure, and then find it together with Mongolian authorities.
Version 1: the crown was among the treasures of the Romanovs
Commenting on Barham's version, the American specialist on Russian history, J. Arch Getty, expressed doubts that the Russian tsarina would have wished to send the treasures to China and not to Europe: “In 1917 there was no more unreliable bank than the Chinese one”.
Also in his memoirs, Barchem is alarmed by the date of sending the royal treasures to China - February 1917. While historians always point to August 1917 - it was then that the family of the last Russian emperor Nicholas II was sent into exile in the Siberian city of Tobolsk by order of the Provisional Government. The Romanovs took with them all the family jewels, which were packed in several chests. All other valuables left in the Alexander Palace were sent by the Provisional Government to Moscow, to the basements of the Historical Museum.
In Tobolsk, the Romanovs allegedly secretly handed over some of the treasures for safekeeping to local ministers of the church, nuns from the monastery and members of their retinue.
When in April 1918 Nicholas, Alexandra and their daughter Maria were sent to Yekaterinburg, the treasures were again divided: some were taken to the capital of the Urals, and some remained with their daughters. After the execution of the royal family on the night of July 16-17 in Yekaterinburg, it turned out that almost nothing remained of the huge collection of family jewelry. Only diamonds sewn into the clothes of the Grand Duchesses and the Queen (half a day), and several dozen small gold items (in three small boxes).
Where did most of the royal treasures disappear? Researchers have been struggling to answer this question for 90 years. One of the latest versions is set forth in the Russian investigative film "The Gold of the Tsar's Family" (2008). It suggests that the most valuable part of the tsar's treasures was deliberately hidden in order to save them from the Bolsheviks who came to power. Here, if you follow the version of Patt Barham, and it can be assumed that among them could well be the crown of the Russian Empire. In addition, it is almost a stone's throw from the Siberian taiga to the Gobi Desert.
Version 2: the crown was kept together with the gold reserve of the empire
The second path along which the crown of the Russian Empire could get to Mongolia is the path along which the gold reserve of the Russian Empire disappeared. But for this, it must be admitted that, in addition to money, the treasures of the Tsar's court could be located in the storerooms of the Kazan Bank (where, starting from 1915, almost the entire gold reserve of the empire was brought).
According to the official history, in August 1918, the 40-thousandth Czechoslovak corps, which rebelled in May of the same year, following the Trans-Siberian Railway to Vladivostok, seized the gold reserve of the Russian Empire (in the form of money) - the equivalent of 507 tons 144 kg of gold. True, historians admit that gold has already got to Kazan "without the corresponding inventory documents" - that is, no one knew what part of the gold reserve was lost along the way. At the end of 1918, the gold got to Omsk, where it was placed at the disposal of Admiral Kolchak, who by that time had declared himself the supreme ruler of Russia.
When on May 3, 1920, the gold reserve returned to the Kazan office of the People's Bank of the RSFSR, it amounted to the equivalent of only 318 tons of 848 kg of gold. The missing 189 tons to this day haunt historians and Russian politicians, and even more so to illegal owners of these treasures abroad. True, this calculation excluded 4.6 tons of precious metals, which the Bolsheviks managed to take out of Kazan, when in August 1918 the Whites started fighting for this city. In addition, there is a version that several tens of tons of Kolchak gold still rest in the Siberian taiga, stolen and hidden by someone unknown.
Another part of Kolchak's gold disappeared along with the Czech corps. According to the circle of the Minister of Finance of the government Kolchak Novitsky, the extraction of legionnaires amounted to 63 million gold rubles. However, according to the testimony of the researcher V. Wrangel, the Prague military archive contains a document on the transfer into the hands of legionnaires ... 18 wagons (!) With Russian valuables.
According to another Russian researcher V. Cherepakhin, "Czechoslovak legionnaires took out 30,563 poods of gold (1 pood equals 16 kg) in coins, ingots and jewelry."
There are also known cases of theft of gold reserves. They occurred at a time when the train was guarded by mixed Czechoslovak-Russian forces. For example, only at Tyret station, 13 boxes of gold were lost (discovered on January 14, 1920).
Did Lenin know where Kolchak's gold was?
This is where the ground for assumptions appears, which may seem inappropriate, although they may shed light on the fate of the royal treasures.
For example, talking somehow in the 1970s with a local ethnographer, an employee of one of the Ural local history museums, I was faced with the fact that the official story about the execution of Kolchak (as well as about the death of Chapaev) looks suspicious in his eyes, and sometimes implausible. The main thing that aroused mistrust among this researcher was that after the execution, Kolchak's body was drowned in the Angara River. Why was this done, if even the bodies of the executed royal family were buried in the ground, even if they were hidden? And from Kolchak, for some reason, it was necessary not to leave any trace. The local historian believed that the Bolsheviks could secretly release Kolchak - in exchange for his obligation not to wage a war against Soviet Russia (previously, this was done in relation to other tsarist generals).
The version, of course, absolutely does not fit into the official history. However, if you look at it through the prism of discoveries of recent decades, when it turned out that the dogmas of official Soviet history were often far from both actual events and science in general, then it has a right to exist.
Moreover, it could help to find out the secret of the disappearance of Kolchak gold. For example, how did it get to Manchuria to the famous ataman Semyonov? In favor of the existence of such a version, I at one time heard the opinion of one of the party officials of the Soviet era, who, in turn, referred to the secretary of the CPSU Central Committee G. Razumovsky, and he referred to M. Suslov and, at times, A. Gromyko. So, according to the Kremlin legend, Lenin personally participated in the search for the missing Kolchak gold. And in the early 1920s, he sent his special envoy somewhere in North China to notify the leaders of the Chinese revolutionary movement about the transfer to them by the government of Soviet Russia of all the rights to own the part of Kolchak's gold that went to Manchuria. And the Chinese revolutionaries allegedly used the legendary gold for the needs of their revolution.
By the way, it is this vague historical trace that suggests that Patt Barham's version of the burial of the crown of the Russian Empire in the Gobi Desert is not without foundation. But in order to answer this question, one must first find out the fate of a part of Kolchak's gold, which, no one knows how, was transported (or not) to Manchuria.
Version 3: the crown was hidden in Chuguev
And here is another version of where the real crown of the Russian Empire is located (accordingly, the one that is exhibited at the Diamond Fund in Moscow is again declared a copy). It is defended by the amateur Kharkiv ethnographer Elena Chernyshova, who claims that the symbol of royal power should be sought ... in Chuguev.
The legend, of course, is not officially confirmed. However, rumors that the crown of the Russian Empire was buried somewhere in these places were supported by more than one generation of Chuguevites. Many were even convinced of their reliability - after all, representatives of the royal dynasties had visited Chuguev and its environs more than once. The residents of Chuguev themselves even began to consider the crown as an energy symbol of the city, capable of attracting famous people and important events to these places.
According to Chernyshova, the royal crown was buried somewhere in the central part of the city. Excavations here have not yet been carried out, and attempts to find the crown by value seekers have led nowhere. Although, according to historians, the stories about the crown of the Russian Empire buried in Chuguev most likely resemble a beautiful legend.
In conclusion, it remains to add that the Bolsheviks never made a sacred cow from the Diamond Fund, where the crown of the Russian Empire is displayed today. It is well known that in the 1920s – 1930s, most of the collection's items were sold to the West (569 items out of 773). Moreover, they have not settled in any of the most famous collections in the world. Nowadays, the treasures of the Romanovs' house appeared at Western auctions several times, but these were things of the 18th century, sold at auction in 1927.
Therefore, is it any wonder that some researchers to this day cannot agree that Soviet Russia managed to preserve the main values of the Russian tsars, including the Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire?
Prepared by Oleg Lobanov
based on materials by V. Sirotkin "Foreign Klondikes of Russia", "Echo of Moscow", ATN, "Wikipedia", "ChKS", I. Bunich. "Gold of the Party", Los Angeles Times, Inopressa.ru, InoSMI.Ru
Crown of the russian empire
(from Latin corona - crown)- a special precious coronation headdress of the imperial court of Russia, symbolizing the highest step in the hierarchy and being the emblem of the supreme power - a sign of royal dignity; large imperial crown of the Russian Empire, which was placed on the head of the new autocrat.
Priambula
Encyclopedic information about Russian crowns from the Brockhaus and Efron encyclopedia:
“A crown is a headdress or headband, which serves as a sign of a certain power and in its form defining rank, rank, title, and sometimes the merit of the person to whom it belongs. Undoubtedly, K. owes its origin to a wreath or crown, representing its own variety.
Currently, the following books are stored in the Moscow Armory Chamber:
1).
Saint Vladimir;
2).
Kazan, ordered by Ivan the Terrible for the baptism of the Kazan Tsar Ediger and sent after the death of the latter to Moscow;
3).
Astrakhan, made in 1627 by order of Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich;
4).
Siberian (altabass hat) made of gold brocade; ordered in 1684;
5).
the Tauride or so-called Monomakh's hat of the second category, made in 1682 for the coronation of Peter the Great;
6).
brilliant cut by K. Peter the Great, German work, decorated in front with two double-headed eagles;
7).
diamond K. Ioann Alekseevich.
Since the time of Mikhail Fyodorovich, seals have been printed in European form, but in reality they did not exist at that time. The first K. of the European model was made in 1724 for the coronation of Catherine I. Peter II was crowned with this K. He ordered to decorate the arc dividing K. with a large ruby, bought by order of Alexei Mikhailovich in Beijing, from the Chinese bogdykhan, by ambassador Nikolai Spafari; a diamond cross was attached to its top. For the coronation of Anna Ioannovna, K. was ordered according to the same model, but even more luxurious and larger; the number of stones decorating it reaches 2605 pieces. On the arc is a ruby taken from K. Peter II. Since 1856, this K. has been called Polish and in the state coat of arms is placed on the coat of arms of the Kingdom of Poland. The same K., slightly altered, was crowned Elizaveta Petrovna. Catherine II ordered a new K. for her coronation to the court jeweler Pozier, for the decoration of which 58 very large and 4878 small diamonds, a large ruby and 75 large pearls were used; she weighed up to 5 pounds. For the coronation of Paul I, this K. was somewhat expanded and 75 pearls were replaced by 54 large ones; all subsequent emperors were also crowned with it ”.
History
For the first time, the transition from traditional gem-studded hats to European-style crowns occurred during the crowning of Catherine I - a crown of gold and silver, studded with many diamonds, was made for her.
The great imperial crown of the Russian Empire was made for the coronation in 1762 by the famous jewelers Georg-Friedrich Eckart, who was the author of the sketches and the frame, and also supervised the work of Jeremy (Jeremiah: in Russia he was called Eremey Petrovich) Pozier, who was engaged in the selection of stones. The work was carried out by special order of Catherine II. The famous masters were given only one condition - the crown had to weigh no more than 5 pounds (2 kilograms).
The archives contain the names of the talented goldsmiths who participated in the "crown case" - Ivan Evstigneev and Ivan Lipman, and even the artisans of the court diamond workshop. For their work, all jewelers were paid 8200 rubles from the treasury. The jewelry miracle was created in just two months. It was the most famous crown of the Russian Empire until the end of the monarchy, which embodied the supreme power in Russia. The magnificent crown is not inferior to the most magnificent examples of European royal houses.
Because of the enmity between these two jewelers, the name Georg Friedrich Eckart was known for a long time to a limited circle of people. In his notes, Pozier did not mention Eckart and all the glory for many years went only to Jeremy himself.
After the October Revolution, the young communist state of workers 'and peasants' councils, dilapidated and ravaged by gangs of "Bolsheviks," was in need of finance. The government sought loans and turned to Michael Collins, Ireland's finance minister. The royal jewels were used as collateral for the Soviet republic with a loan of $ 25,000. The transfer of valuables and money was carried out in New York, between the head of the "Soviet bureau" - the Soviet ambassador to America, Ludwig Martens, and the Irish ambassador to the United States, Harry Boland. After returning to Ireland, Boland kept jewelry in the house of his mother - Kathleen Boland O "Donovan, who lived in Dublin. During the entire period of the Irish War of Independence, the jewelry was kept by Boland's mother. Mrs. Boland O "donovan donated the jewels of Russia to the government of the Republic of Ireland in the person of Eamon de Valera only in 1938, which were kept in the safes of government buildings and which were forgotten for a while.
In 1948, the values were discovered and by decision of the new Irish government, led by John A. Costello, it was decided to sell the collateralized royal jewels of Russia at a public auction in London. However, after consultations on the legal status of the collateral and negotiations with the Soviet ambassador, the decision to sell was canceled. The valuables were to be returned to the Soviet Union in exchange for a sum of $ 25,000 originally loaned out in 1920. The valuables returned to Moscow in 1950.
Description
The crown of the Russian empire is made in the form of a headdress of oriental traditions ("The turban of Indian sultans, the highest caste of rajas and the Ottoman clergy") consists of precious metals - silver and gold: two silver hemispheres, studded with diamonds, separated by a diamond garland and two rows of pearls, fastened by a low crown, consisting of a large spinel, one of the 7 historical stones, and a cross of 5 huge diamonds. The master set in silver 4,936 diamonds with a total weight of 2,858 carats and 72 Indian pearls, emphasizing the sparkle of diamond lace with two rows of large matte pearls. The height of the crown with the cross is 27.5 cm. The most famous of the crown jewels is the ruby (spinel) on an arc weighing 398.72 carats separating the two halves of the crown. The stone was purchased in 1676 from the Chinese emperor Kangxi (Chinese 康熙, pinyin Kangxi(Kangxi), proper name Xuanye, whale. 玄 燁, May 4, 1654 - December 20, 1722), and brought to Russia by the scientist and writer Nikolai Spafariy, who was in the diplomatic service under Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich in Beijing (China) from 1675 to 1678. This famous ruby wandered from one crown to another and originally adorned the imperial headdress of Elizabeth Petrovna. Over the ruby there is a cross of five large diamonds. The majestic crown design is not only beautiful, but also filled with deep meaning.
Two hemispheres personify the connection of East and West on the territory of the Russian Empire and uniting two continents in victory over the Ottomans. Connected at the base of the crown and framed with pearls, they represent the Latin letter "V" (Victoria - victory)... From below, the grid of hemispheres is covered by laurel branches - a symbol of power and glory, and in the drawing of a garland between the hemispheres are placed oak leaves and acorns, which symbolizes the strength and strength of power.
Three large gems dominating the state regalia of the Russian Empire - red spinel (v crown) , blue sapphire (v power) and a shining white diamond (v skipere) - are consonant in color with the red-blue-white Russian flag.
By order of the king, an exact copy of the crown of a smaller size was made, which was used for the coronation of queens. In 1900, Faberge made a complete set of exact copies of the imperial regalia (large and small imperial crowns, orb and scepter) in miniature of silver, gold, diamonds, sapphires and rubies on a marble base; the work is in the collection of the Hermitage.
Coronation
According to the Byzantine tradition, the imperial crown was put on the king's head as a symbol of the supreme power bestowed by the Almighty. Noble persons from all over the world and noble representatives of their country were invited to the coronation. During the solemn ceremony, an oath of allegiance to the people and the Motherland was read, as well as a prayer for the glory of the Lord; the emperor accepted the symbols of state power.
The crown of the Russian Empire was last used in 1906 at the opening ceremony of the Russian State Duma.
Crowned with a large crown:
- 1762 Catherine II the Great
- 1797 Paul I
- 1801 Alexander I
- 1826 Nicholas I
- 1855 Alexander II
- 1883 Alexander III
- 1896 Nicholas II
Value
By the early 1880s, the jewelry value of Eckart and Pozier's jewelry exceeded 1 million rubles (in gold). Currently, the Great Imperial Crown is in the Diamond Fund of the Russian Federation.
Use in heraldry
The imperial crown is found in the large coats of arms of the male imperial family, in the personal coat of arms of His Majesty and in the coats of arms of the provinces. The minor coats of arms of the persons of the imperial house have a heraldic crown, representing nothing more than the North German noble crown. If the pearls in the crown are crowned with crosses, then it receives the name of the ancient royal and is used in the coats of arms of the regions. A wall crown is placed in the coats of arms of cities, and an antique crown is usually used to crown heraldic figures. In the coats of arms of the untitled nobility, the crown is crowned with the helmet, but before the coats of arms were approved without the crown; the latter was sometimes placed on a shield or in the air above a helmet. In baronial coats of arms, the crown is placed either directly above the shield, or on the helmet crowning the shield. In the coats of arms of counts, the crown is placed on the shield; in addition, if there are several helmets, then the middle one is sometimes crowned with the same crown; the rest are covered by the nobility and the baronial, if the last title was held by the owner of the coat of arms. A princely cap is usually placed over a mantle, but can also be crowned with a shield and helmet.
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Since December 20, 2000, the imperial crown of the Russian Empire has been depicted again on the coat of arms of the state revived after the collapse of the USSR - the Russian Federation.
In art
- Adventure feature film "The Crown of the Russian Empire, or Elusive Again", 1971 (USSR)
- Painting by Borovikovsky (1757-1825) "Portrait of Paul I" (1800-1801)
Commercial use
The crown of the Russian empire had many unofficial uses for advertising and on the labels of various products, especially various brands of vodka and caviar. Some varieties of expensive original champagne (Champagne, France) also have the image of the state symbols of the Russian empire on the labels.
Notes (edit)
- Keogh, Dermot., (2005), "Twentieth Century Ireland", (Revised Edition), Gill & Macmillan, Dublin, p. 208, ISBN 0-7171-3297-8
- The Imperial Crown of Russia (1763).
- The price of a cow up to medium dignity was 5-10 rubles in banknotes (stately and thoroughbred - up to 20). By the end of the 19th century, at the Karaganda coal mines, miners' earnings ranged from 70 kopecks to 1 ruble 40 kopecks per 12-14-hour working day.
additional literature
- Symbols of the Russian Empire
- Books mentioning the crown of the Russian empire in a search engine
Links
- Diamond Fund Treasures
- The collection with historical accuracy presents the best jewelry exhibited in the building of the State Armory Chamber of the Moscow Kremlin
- Women's crown of the Russian Empire (The crisis of succession to the Romanov dynasty ended with the "golden age" of Catherine the Great)
Two masters were directly involved in its creation: a court jeweler named Georg-Friedrich Eckart and a diamond art professional Jeremiah Pozier.
Maximum task
The crown of the Russian Empire (photo of which is given in this article) was published back in 1762. She was ordered specifically in order to carry out the coronation of the wife of the then late Peter III - Catherine II. Eckart was entrusted with the creation of sketches of the future crown, and Pozier - the direct selection of precious stones.
The most important condition set for the masters was this: under no circumstances should the large imperial crown of the Russian Empire be heavier than two kilograms. It should be noted that this condition was met with maximum accuracy. The finished piece of jewelry weighed 1993.8 grams.
Regardless of the complexity of its design, the headdress of the future Empress Catherine II was created in a relatively small amount of juice - in a couple of months.
Appearance and symbolism
It is curious that the shape of the finished jewelry was made in oriental traditions. The crown of the Russian Empire is divided into two silver hemispheres, symbolizing the connection between West and East. The majestic drawing of this product is not only beautiful, but also filled with a very deep meaning: the laurel branches in its lower part symbolize glory, and acorns are the strength and strength of the imperial power.
As for its dimensions, the height is 27.5 centimeters, and the length of the inner hole is 64 centimeters.
The crown of the Russian Empire consists of more than 5 thousand precious stones. Of these, exactly 4936 are the total weight of which is 2858 carats! In addition to diamonds, pearls were used in the crown, which was necessary to emphasize all the beauty of diamond lace. The precious metals included in the decoration of this jewelry were silver and gold. The crown of the headdress is a very rare red gem called
Popular and famous
The large imperial crown “took root at court” so closely that after Catherine II this headdress was a necessary condition for the coronation of all subsequent emperors, from Paul I to the last of the Romanov dynasty, Nicholas II.
Today we can safely say that this crown is the most famous of all its predecessors and followers until the very end of the Romanov monarchy in Russia.
In 1984, this unique jewelry monument was solemnly restored by the jewelers Aleksakhin G.F. and artist Sitnikov V.G. Today this unique piece of jewelry is among the most unique exhibits (imperial power and scepter) in Russia.
Last time...
The most recent case when the crown of the Russian Empire was used was a state event in 1906 - a solemn ceremony on the occasion of the opening in which the last owner of the Russian land, Nikolai II Romanov, participated.