Imperial Austrian Schatzkammer. The weights and values of the great gathering of pearls of the imperial Austrian Schatzkammer were carefully estimated by one of the authors and by his friends, and it is the first attempted inventory ever published.[[523]]
The imperial crown of the Holy Roman Empire, preserved in the treasury of the imperial Burg at Vienna, and known as the crown of Charlemagne, has in front seventeen pearls weighing 424 grains, of which two weigh fifty-six grains each. The remaining fifteen pearls average 20.8 grains. The values of these pearls are as follows:
| Base | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| $2.50 | $5.00 | $7.50 | |
| 15 pearls, 20.8 grains | $16,224 | $32,448 | $48,672 |
| 2 56–grain pearls | 15,680 | 31,360 | 47,040 |
| Total | $31,904 | $63,808 | $95,712 |
THE IMPERIAL AUSTRIAN CROWN
Made by order of Emperor Rudolph II, in 1604
At the back of the crown there are eighteen pearls, weighing 180 grains. One of these has a weight of twenty-six grains; the remaining seventeen average 9.058 grains. The values estimated are as follows:
| Base | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| $2.50 | $5.00 | $7.50 | |
| 17 pearls, 9.058 grains | $3,487.55 | $6,975.10 | $10,462.65 |
| 1 pearl of 26 grains | 1,690.00 | 3,380.00 | 5,070.00 |
| Total | $5,177.55 | $10,355.10 | $15,532.65 |
The pearls in the cross surmounting the crown have a weight of thirty-six grains.
The imperial cross is profusely ornamented with pearls in front, while the back consists simply of silver-gilt. There are three strings of pearls in the front running in each direction. The total weight of the pearls is 4092 grains; one weighing sixty-four grains, and the smallest two grains.
The crucifix of the Golden Fleece is ornamented only in front with pearls; these have a weight of but 136 grains.