The Historic Grünes Gewölbe at Dresden

The famous "Historisches Grünes Gewölbe" returns to the residential palace for the first time after years in September 2 . The beautifully illustrated catalogue takes the reader on a fascinating tour through this unique "Gesamtkunstwerk". The " Grünes Gewölbe" was founded in 55 by Elector August of Saxony as the state treasury, " Geheime Verwahrung." Augustus the Strong converted it into a publicly accessible Schatzkunst museum in 729. His idea was unrivalled: the eight display rooms with their exquisite interiors and the highly impressive mise en scène of the collection were designed to inspire amazement. The extravagant profusion of precious objects in gold, silver, enamel and precious stones, the ivories, bronzes and jewellery proclaimed the wealth and artistic taste of the Saxon dynasty. In 942 the collection was closed and taken into storage at Königstein fortress. The museum's exterior and three of the eight rooms were severely damaged during the war. From 974 a part of the collection could be seen again, but it was not until 2 4 when the " Neues Grünes Gewölbe" was reopened with exhibits from the Renaissance to Neo-Classicism. The book introduces the masterpieces of this fascinating collection and provides an insight into the brilliant concept of the museum's founder, from which the inspiration for this presentation has been drawn.