The Green Vault is a museum located in Dresden, Germany, which contains the largest treasure collection in Europe. The museum was founded in 1723 by Augustus the Strong of Poland and Saxony, and it features a variety of exhibits in styles ranging from Baroque to Classicism.
The Green Vault is named after the formerly malachite green painted column bases and from the capitals of the initial rooms. It has some claim to be the oldest museum in the world; it is older than the British Museum, opened in 1759, but the Vatican Museums date their foundation to the public display of the newly excavated Laocoön group in 1506.
After the bombing of Dresden during World War II, the Green Vault was completely restored. Today, its treasures are shown in two exhibitions: The Historic Green Vault (Historisches Grünes Gewölbe) is famous for its splendors of the historic treasure chamber as it existed in 1733, while the New Green Vault (Neues Grünes Gewölbe) focuses the attention on each individual object in neutral rooms.
The New Green Vault contains works of the royal goldsmith Johann Melchior Dinglinger and other jewelry from the Baroque era. In total, there are roughly 1,100 pieces on display in the New Green Vault. The New Green Vault is located on the second floor of the castle, and is roughly the same size as the Historic vault, at approximately 2,000 square metres.
The New Green Vault consists of 12 rooms:
1. Saal der Kunststücke (Hall of Works of Art): Treasures from the second half of the 16th century, such as "Drinking Vessel in the Shape of Daphne".
2. Mikro-Kabinett (Micro Cabinet): Masterpieces of micro-carving, such as the "Cherry Stone With 185 Carved Faces".
3. Kristall-Kabinett (Crystal Cabinet): Pieces made of rock crystal, such as a rock crystal galley with scenes from classical mythology that accompanied Augustus the Strong on the journey to his coronation in Poland.
4. Erster Raum des Kurfürsten (First Elector's Room): Treasures from the first half of the 17th century, such as the "Large Ivory Frigate Supported by Neptune".
5. Zweiter Raum des Kurfürsten (Second Elector's Room): Treasures from the second half of the 17th century, such as table clocks and rock crystal pitchers.
6. Raum der königlichen Pretiosen (Room of Royal Precious Objects): Ivory and pearl pieces, clocks and watches, such as "Nautilus Goblet With Venus" ("Venus Bowl").
7. Dinglinger-Saal (Dinglinger Hall): Pieces made by court goldsmith Johann Melchior Dinglinger, such as the "Golden Coffee Service", "The Royal Household at Delhi on the Occasion of the Birthday of the Grand Mogul Aureng-Zeb", and the "Bath of Diana".
8. Email-Kabinett (Enamel Cabinet): Painted enamels and a large enamel painting depicting Cleopatra's Feast.
9.. Raum der reisenden Pretiosen (Travelling Treasures Room): Historical cases for the transport of masterpieces; they were shaped in such a way that the objects they were intended to hold fitted exactly.
10. Neuber-Raum (Neuber Room): Contains masterpieces of Johann Christian Neuber, such as the fragments of a decorative fireplace.
11. Sponsel-Raum (Sponsel Room): Special exhibition room.
12.Watzdorf-Kabinett (Watzdorf Cabinet): Hat clasp decorated with the Dresden Green Diamond, the only large naturally green diamond that has ever been found.
The Historic Green Vault consists of nine rooms and one entrance chamber.
Entrance to the Historic Green Vault requires advance purchase of tickets for a specific entry time slot. A limited number of tickets is also sold every morning. The New Green Vault can be visited at any time.
Source: Wikipedia (
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