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FAMOUS PEARLS AND COLLECTIONS 475
grains, equal to four and a half pounds, avoirdupois, and they are worth from $2,000,000 to $4,000,000.
The
so-called crown of Charlemagne bears the inscription : "Chuon-radus Rex
Dei gratia Romanorum Imperator Aug." It is believed to be a work of the
twelfth century and originally the royal crown of Conrad III, king of
the Germans (1093-1152), the first Hohenstau-fen.1 The arch is said to have
been added to adapt this royal crown for use in the expected coronation
of Conrad as emperor. He died, however, while making preparations for
his journey to Rome.
The
imperial vestments used in the coronation ceremonies of the Holy Roman
Empire, were produced in the celebrated Hôtel de Tirâz, at Palermo.
Roger II, King of Sicily (1096-1154), after a victorious campaign in
Greece, brought back with him to Sicily a number of skilled
silk-weavers and embroiderers, whom, he established at Palermo. The
imperial mantle is of a brilliant purple and bears an inscription,
embroidered in gold and pearls, stating that the garment was made in
the royal manufactory in the year 1133. Two pearl-embroidered
representations of a lion, who has stricken down a camel and is about
to tear it to pieces, also appear on this mantle. This symbol of royal
power was used frequently by the Saracens, and it is said that Richard
Cœur de Lion had this design embroidered on his saddlecloths.2
A
fine collection of large baroque pearls is preserved in the Grüne
Gewölbe (Green Vaults) in the palace at Dresden, which contains the
treasures of the royal family of Saxony. Most of these were mounted
during the eighteenth century by J. M. Dinglinger (1665-1731), the
famous goldsmith to the Saxon Elector, King Augustus II of Poland, and
who is sometimes called the German Cellini. A splendid specimen of his
work is a vase of Egyptian jasper in the shape of a shell, bearing a
representation of Hercules fighting with the Nemsean lion ; this bears
reference to the immense personal strength and power of Augustus II,
whose portrait is painted in enamel on a mirror at the back. The
pedestal is adorned with a great many precious stones, pearls, and
enamel paintings in the shape of cameos representing the twelve labors
of Hercules. A dragon is studded with emeralds and its back is formed
of pearls, with a large sardonyx in the middle. Hercules and the lion
are in enamel.
In
the same collection may be seen the figure of a dwarf made by Ferbecq,
who was one of the goldsmiths of King Augustus. The body of the dwarf
is formed of a baroque pearl, which is studded with small diamonds. His
sleeves and trousers are in black and green enamel; his hat is also of
green enamel and on it is a string
1 Winckler, "Die Reichskleinodien," Berlin, 1872, p. 17. * Ibid., p. 9.
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