10 Expensive Crown Jewels of the World

Royalty signifies centuries of reigning, prosperity and wealth. There is perhaps no better way of portraying royalty than the crown jewels. These priceless wonders have adorned many rulers and now hold a special place in various museums. Here are some of the exquisite and expensive crown jewels of the world, as given by Luxpresso.Com -

1. United Kingdom

The U.K. crown jewels top the list of the most famous set of royal jewels in the world. The Crown Jewels of U.K. are one of the most stunning sets in the world. It also is a whopping over $39 million in worth.

The set comprises - the royal robe or pall, armill, dalmatic, columbium sindonis, spurs, rings, swords, orbs, sceptres (with a cross or dove) and the crowns. There are more items included in the set for the royal crowning ceremony. The Imperial State Crown, made for King George VI, has quite an extensive selection of gems - 5 rubies, 11 emeralds, 17 sapphires, 273 pearls and a whopping 2,868 diamonds. What makes this particular set of such great value is its 105-carat Koh-i-Noor diamond in the Crown of The Queen Mother. The Koh-i-Noor belonged to our country but was taken away from us during the Imperial rule.

2. Austria

Austria is known for its democracy and high standard of living. It is the motherland of various scientists and philosophers, like – Sigmund Freud and Peter Drucker and our very own Terminator.

The Crown Jewels of Austria are just as famous as its people. The entire set consists of the following - royal robes, holy relics, crosses, rings, swords, orbs, scepters and the crown. These were worn first by the Holy Roman Emperor and the Austrian Emperor. These date back to the 10^th century and are kept at the Imperial Treasury Schatzkammer. The Wittelsbach Diamond or Der Blue Wittessbatcher is a 36 carat diamond and is about $16.4 million in worth, making the Crown Jewels of Austria very valuable.

3. Bavaria

Bavaria, now Germany, is the second most populous state of Germany and also one of the oldest parts in Europe.

Napoleon had granted the German duchy of Bavaria its status of kingdom in 1806, when he had re-ordered the map of Europe. This is when Maximilian I, the new King of Bavaria, had given orders to have the crown jewels made for the new rulers. This famous crown is adorned with – pearls, sapphires, emeralds, diamonds and rubies. The crown is currently housed in the treasury of the palace of Residenz, Munich. The Wittelsbach Diamond or Der Blue Wittessbatcher also adorns the crown jewels of Bavaria, making it equally valuable, around $17 million.

4. Czech Republic

Czech Republic, formerly called Bohemia, is the proud member of various international forums, like – NATO, European Union, the Council of Europe and so on.

The crown jewels of Czech Republic comprise the following - St. Wenceslas' sword, gold reliquary cross, coronation vestments of the Bohemian kings, scepter, a royal orb and the Crown of Saint Wenceslas. The entire set is made of 22 carat gold, with 4 fleurs-de-lis placed vertically. It is also adorned with – pearls, emeralds, sapphires and rubies. The set was made especially for the coronation of Charles IV in the year 1347.

   

5. Denmark

Denmark is perhaps best known for its desserts and pastries. Apart from this, Denmark has a rich cultural history.

The Crown Jewels of Denmark or the Danish Crown Regalia consist of - an ampulla, or flask, sword of state, orb and scepter. The crown jewels of Denmark consist of 3 crowns. People of Denmark use technical terms, like - new regalia and old regalia to distinguish between the gems that existed before and after the creation of absolute monarchy in the year 1660. The oldest item in the royal set is the sword, dating back to 1551.

6. Georgia

Like the Czech Republic, Georgia is the member of the Council of Europe.

The most interesting fact about the crown jewels of Kartl-Kakheti, a manjor part of Georgia, is that there is no concrete information about it before 1798, although it is speculated that a crown did exist before that. It is said that the ancient crown was lost in 1795 when Shah Agha Mohammed Khan of Persia invaded the kingdom. George XII of Georgia had a replacement crown made in 1798, in Russia. The design deviated from traditional Georgian one. It is made of gold and adorned with 16 amethysts, 24 emeralds, 58 rubies and 145 diamonds. A globe also sits atop the crown.

7. Norway

Norway is primarily known for Vikings and how they mesmerize our imagination and operas.

The Crown Jewels of Norway is a 9 item set, which includes - the anointing horn, crown of the crown prince, the queen's orb, the queen's sceptre, the queen's crown, the king's orb, the king's scepter, sword of the realm and the king's crown. The set is further adorned by coronation thrones, two banners of the realm and the coronation robes. The crowning glories of the set are - a white opal, an alexandrite, a topaz, a ruby and an emerald.

8. Portugal

Portugal is known for a high Human Development Index. It also has a good quality of life and health-care system.

The Crown Jewels of Portugal are also called the Portuguese Royal Crown. There is only one such crown left of the Portuguese Royal family. An interesting fact about this crown is that from 1640 to 1910, it was not worn by the royalty but kept beside them. King John IV had kept his crown near the base of an image of ‘Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception’ by quoting that she was "the real Queen of Portugal.” The crown is made only of gold and red velvet, made in an imperial format for the acclamation of King John VI. It is currently housed in the Ajuda Palace, Lisbon.

9. Prussia

Prussia is perhaps best known for being called the ‘Lesser Germany’ during the 19^th century and how it influenced Germany immensely during that time.

The Crown Jewels of Prussia belonged to the crown kings of Prussia, belonging to the Hohenzollern dynasty. The set comprises – scepters, an orb and crowns. As it is not as adorned with precious stones, it is often called “rather plain” by its contemporaries, like – Russia and Britain. The older Crown Jewels of Prussia were often called the German Crown Jewels and included - royal Crown of Frederick I, royal Crown of Queen Sophie Charlotte, Royal Sceptre of Prussia and Royal Orb of Prussia. The set is currently on display in the Charlottenburg Palace, Berlin.

10. Serbia

The most famous Serbian worth mentioning is Nikola Tesla, the developer of modern Alternating Current (AC) electrical supply system.

As Serbia had many rulers and royal families, it has a number of distinct crowns and crown jewels. Though initially there were 4 such crowns, only 1 exists today - the Karadordevic Crown. The Crown Jewels of Serbia or the Karadordevic Serbian Royal Regalia comprise the following - Royal crown or Karadordevic Crown, royal orb, royal scepter, royal mantle buckle and the royal mantle. The orb, scepter and crown are adorned with gems and have the national colours – white, blue and red. The royal mantle is made of purple velvet, is lined in fur and embroidered in gold.