Filthy Rich Saxon Kings

Dresden, the second city I've been staying in, is the capital of the state of Saxony. Most recognize the name from the controversial Allied aerial bombing towards the end of WWII, where parts of this city were entirely decimated. Since then, most of the old town has been rebuilt, particularly the huge palaces King Augustus the Strong built, and up until recently, the city had been a UNESCO World Heritage Site (more on that later...it's one of two cities to have that title revoked).

But enough of the history. For now, all you need to know is that King Augustus was an art fanatic. When he ascended the throne, he gathered all the best artists, from sculptors to jewelers to painters, at his palace and commissioned works of gold, silver, mother-of-pearl, and ivory, to name a few.

Where did all this go? Into his vaults, of course. And they're not just any plain old vaults. Oh no. Since he was rich, he had to show it. I don't know German, so I've already forgotten the term for this style, but basically, the items were grouped in rooms according to value, with the last room containing the best of the works. As if the art pieces themselves didn't say enough about their own worth, the rooms became more and more extravagant as well, matching the art. We started in a green marble room containing ivory statues and ended up in a room covered in mirrors with gold veneer on the ceilings. Small shelfs lined with gold paint were arranged on the mirrors, and gold/jeweled encrusted chalices/crystal cups/mother-of-pearl caskets/semi-precious stone carvings/etc were placed on each. I would say that at least 200 items were contained in each room. (And my description really isn't doing the vault any justice at all: go here for some pictures of the art pieces and for the ridiculousness of the rooms)

Essentially, the room was covered in shiny objects, and then this effect was multiplied because of the mirrors. I didn't know it was possible to become sick of jewelry and gold before this, but I definitely eventually got a headache from looking at everything.

That is not to say, though, that I didn't appreciate the 41-karat brilliant cut green diamond that is the only one of its kind in the world. Exposure to radiation led the green coloring, and the diamond was set as a brooch surrounded by at least 20 other 16-karat diamonds. All together, now: ooooooh, pretty!