AMAZING TREASURES A collection of

Amazing Treasures

#1 Rich Royals

By David Long, illustrations by Studio Muti

For most of history,

emperors, kings and queens were usually the richest people in their own countries. A single one of their treasures could be worth far more than an ordinary person would earn in a year – or even a lifetime. Here we look at four amazing royal treasures from around the world.

Windsor Castle UK

The largest continually inhabited castle in the world is also one of the very oldest. It was built nearly 1,000 years ago, just after the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. It’s been a royal residence for almost as long as that. The medieval King Edward III was born within its thick stone walls. King Henry VIII came to Windsor to hunt, play tennis and write songs. Even now the Queen, Elizabeth II, spends most of her weekends here. When a part of Windsor Castle caught fire in 1992, nearly 7 million litres of water were needed to save this precious medieval survivor.

The Round Tower This tall building is built on the site of the original castle, constructed by the Normans in the 11OOs.

Lower Ward The western courtyard, called the Lower Ward, includes the main chapel for the castle, as well as the Curfew Tower, which once contained a dungeon. Upper Ward The eastern courtyard, called the Upper Ward, contains apartments and rooms for royalty and visitors. The rooms are decorated in many lavish styles.

St George’s Hall This impressive hall, often used for banquets, was rebuilt after a fire in 1992. The ceiling is studded with the coats of arms of every Knight of the Garter since this order of knights was founded in 1348. There is an armoured statue on horseback at the far end of the hall known as ‘The King’s Champion’. When a new monarch was crowned, a real champion would ride into the celebration banquet at Westminster Hall in London and challenge anyone to deny the authority of the new king or queen.

Tiny treasures The royal collection of treasures at Windsor Castle includes many priceless objects, but the most unique may be a doll’s house. The tiny house is complete with working taps and a flushable toilet, a library stocked with real, miniature books, and a hidden garden that can be pulled out from underneath like a drawer.

This enormous gemstone is said to be the fifth largest diamond in the world. It was once owned by the fabulously wealthy Nizam, or ruler, of Hyderabad, an area of central India. The last Nizam found the gem in a shoe in his palace. It had been left there to be forgotten by his father,

Fabergé Eggs Russia

Peter Carl Fabergé was the greatest jeweller of the late 18OOs and early 19OOs. His most famous creations were these elaborate enamelled Easter eggs. He made them for the Russian tsars, or emperors, Alexander III and Nicholas II (pictured right). Each one contained a different ‘surprise’. One egg included a miniature gold clockwork train, while another opened to reveal a tiny mechanical peacock. Only around 46 Fabergé eggs have survived. A single egg can now sell for millions of pounds. who was angry about a dispute that happened when he was buying it. Despite its value, the last Nizam used the diamond as a paperweight to keep the things on his desk in order. Today it is kept in a vault and owned by the Indian government, along with most of the Nizam’s other jewels.

Royal celebration Several of the eggs were made to commemorate special events, such as the coronation of an empress or the completion of the railway from European Russia to the far east of Siberia.

Bust of Nefertiti Egypt

One of the most powerful women in ancient Egypt, Queen Nefertiti was the wife of Pharaoh Akhenaten, who ruled from around 1353 BCE. Thousands of years after she was queen, Nefertiti was made famous again by the discovery, in 1912, of this striking painted sculpture. It shows a beautiful woman with strong features and a long, elegant neck. Since its discovery, the sculpture of Nefertiti has become one of the most copied pieces of art from ancient times.