Imperial Cross and Cross at the Aachen City Hall
I was actually quite disappointed with my visit to the Aachen City Hall. It seems that despite its exterior, so far I have only seen a hall where they probably had the coronation feasts. This is disappointing considering that there have been more than thirty coronations in Aachen over the centuries. One might expect that the place would be a little more presentable. Perhaps it was more impressive back then. These days, it doesn’t seem to be that interesting. This changed when, apparently, I found out that there is something very important to the right of the hall. It seems that there is imperial regalia on display here.
Saint Stephen’s Purse at Aachen City Hall
Imperial regalia are items which are related to the emperor. In the case of Aachen, the ones on display here would be items like the crown, scepter and similar items. It is worth noting that these items are actually just replicas of the actual ones kept in Vienna. Looking at these, I wouldn’t be any wiser since they look authentic enough. The crown is obviously one of the more important items and this one is worn by the leader of the Holy Roman Empire. Interestingly, this particular crown didn’t exist during the time of Charlemagne but it was made after his rule.
Imperial Orb at the Aachen City Hall
Other items of note is the Imperial Cross which was meant to house the relics of Christ himself – pieces of the cross and the lance which pierced him. I don’t really know how real this is but my belief has always been that you don’t need such items to believe in something. Apparently, these items were used to emphasize their authority over the people. There are also other items like an Imperial Gospel which is basically a bible except this one is covered in gold. One of the more curious items is the Imperial Orb. I have seen these in religious statues but this is the first time I have seen it used by royals. I guess that is where the statue came from. The orb is basically a sphere with a jewel encrusted cross on it.
I think this small exhibit saved the day for the city hall as I was already getting bored with just seeing the hall. It is a shame that the imperial regalia doesn’t get as much prominence in the building as I think it should. Replicas they may be but they are still important symbols of how it was back then. In fact, these replicas were made at the start of the twentieth century to commemorate the coronations at Aachen.
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