When in Vienna, the "Silver Collection" tour at Hofburg Palace should not be missed out . The Imperial Chancellory wing in the Palace displays an impressive collection of the court's silverware, cutlery and many unique tableware . I was'nt quite sure whether I wanted to take this tour to see some Silver collection for cutlery ! Now, the tour name "Silver Collection" has very little to do with Silver . There is so much and so much more on display and all this after some of the collection was passed on to Austrian Republic post the end of the Monarchy.
Empress Elisabeth, wife of Emperor Franz Joseph I, was lovingly known a Sisi . Her life has been a research subject for long and a lot of documentation has been put in place. She detested the rigid protocols of the Habsburgs/royalty and followed her own mind. Quite a non-conformist for her time!
Sisi was known to be obssessed with her beauty and youthful figure and she paid immense attention, from exercise to diet to 2 hours of hair care that was part of her daily routine, to maintain her youth & beauty.
Her life had been tragic from time to time, from losing her first born daughter due to illness to losing her only son at his hunting lodge. She could never recover from these deep wounds. She herself was assassinated by an Italian anarchist while she was travelling to Geneva.
Many of her items are part of the Museum collection at the Hofburg and the court's cutlery/silverware also has many items from her personal choice .
A few images from the vast array of display and elaborate collection .
(all images here are with the humble Cell Phone camera ) .
The images here do not justify the grandiose of these very artistic collections . For art lovers and connoisseurs ,you will not want to miss this .
Note : You can get the Sisi ticket which allows the Grand Tour at Schonbrunn + Sisi Museums at Hofburg + Imperial furniture collection.
Interestingly this ticket is valid for 1 year and one is entitled for a single visit to the mentioned attractions on any day during the validity of the ticket.
Empress Elisabeth, wife of Emperor Franz Joseph I, was lovingly known a Sisi . Her life has been a research subject for long and a lot of documentation has been put in place. She detested the rigid protocols of the Habsburgs/royalty and followed her own mind. Quite a non-conformist for her time!
Sisi was known to be obssessed with her beauty and youthful figure and she paid immense attention, from exercise to diet to 2 hours of hair care that was part of her daily routine, to maintain her youth & beauty.
Her life had been tragic from time to time, from losing her first born daughter due to illness to losing her only son at his hunting lodge. She could never recover from these deep wounds. She herself was assassinated by an Italian anarchist while she was travelling to Geneva.
Many of her items are part of the Museum collection at the Hofburg and the court's cutlery/silverware also has many items from her personal choice .
A few images from the vast array of display and elaborate collection .
(all images here are with the humble Cell Phone camera ) .
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| Handpainted florals on porcelain |
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| The upper shelf displays the collection especially designed for Emperor Franz Joseph I for his hunting lodge, at the request of Sisi |
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| Very delicate and fragile artwork on dessert cups |
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| Art for fruits ! |
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The images here do not justify the grandiose of these very artistic collections . For art lovers and connoisseurs ,you will not want to miss this .
Note : You can get the Sisi ticket which allows the Grand Tour at Schonbrunn + Sisi Museums at Hofburg + Imperial furniture collection.
Interestingly this ticket is valid for 1 year and one is entitled for a single visit to the mentioned attractions on any day during the validity of the ticket.
