The Saxon regalia there exhibited includes the sword of the elector, carried by the princes at the imperial coronations; the decorations of a miner’s uniform made for the Elector John George; a great number of chains, collars, and orders of the Garter, Golden Fleece, and Polish Eagle; and a curious antique portrait (a cameo of onyx) of Augustus the Strong. A sardonyx six and a half inches long, and four and a half broad, reputed to be the largest extant, attracts much attention from its oval shape and beautiful regularity.
Two rings once worn by Martin Luther appeal not a little to earnest Protestants. One of these, an enamelled seal ring, cut with a death’s head, and the motto “Mori sæpe cogita” (Reflect often on death), is sufficiently mournful in suggestion to satisfy the most dismal of theologians. The other ring is a carnelian bearing a rose, and in its centre a cross.
A RARE COLLECTION OF JEWELS.
Then comes a glass case of the rarest and costliest jewels, the first division containing superb sapphires, the largest of them uncut, the gift of Peter the Great. The second division is full of splendid emeralds; the third of magnificent rubies (the two largest weighing forty-eight and sixty carats); the fourth abounding in beautiful pearls, one native set being little inferior to the Oriental; while the fifth division is radiant with diamonds.
Such another collection does not exist anywhere in the world. If these diamonds were sold for the sum they would very readily bring, they would more than pay off, it is said, the entire national debt of Saxony. The diamond decorations for the gala dress of the elector consists of buttons, collar, sword and scabbard, all incrusted with the largest and most valuable stones, some of them weighing fifty carats each. The most remarkable of the stones is a green brilliant, weighing one hundred and sixty carats, and said to be worth two millions of dollars. There are also various orders studded with diamonds and many single gems, yellow, rose, and green in color, as well as pure white.
DIAMONDS IN ABUNDANCE.
Admirers of diamonds can have an ocular banquet there; for the collection is magnificent beyond description. I have seen women hang over them until their eyes fairly watered (I wonder if this is the reason they are called gems of the first water), and I have noticed men regard them with a passion for possession that savored of wildness. As mere objects of beauty, they are deserving of all admiration. Those priceless gems are constant miracle-workers. The smallest ray of light that falls upon them is converted into a glorious sheen. They make the very atmosphere brilliant, emitting from every point a radiance which is dazzling. Hardly any conjuration of magic can be greater. The blaze of jewels, when the sunlight touches them, is almost overpowering. The mines of Golconda, as they were in their palmiest days, appear to be open, and all their glorious treasures to be flashing, scintillating, coruscating at once.
PRECAUTIONS AGAINST THEFT.
One might imagine that the diamonds and many of the other valuables of the Green Vaults would be in danger from the admission of strangers. The naturalness of this opinion has doubtless given rise to the story that unseen soldiers have their muskets levelled through invisible loopholes in the walls at the head or breast of everybody entering the royal treasury. This is a mere romance, never having had the smallest foundation in fact. Such precautions are not at all necessary; for nobody could steal anything, and get away with it, even if he should try. The costliest objects are covered with strong iron or steel wires, not sufficient to obstruct the view, bµt enough to prevent their seizure by any designing or dishonest person. Moreover, the custodian, who conducts you through the cabinets, locks and bolts each door after him, so that the thief could not easily make his escape; and if he did succeed in getting beyond the walls, an alarm would be immediately given, which would almost necessarily insure his capture.
The value of the entire collection at Dresden it is almost impossible to give. I have heard it estimated at from twenty millions to twenty-five millions of dollars, and even as high as fifty millions. Most of the works of art, as well as the jewels, are actually beyond price; for they could not be replaced. They could not be purchased any more than the Raffaelles, Correggios, and Titians, in the famous Picture Gallery in the same city.