Link only available on sub pages

Try and count all the tiny heads carved into this cherrystone! It‘s quite incredible, isn‘t it? The intricacy of the carving and the setting of the pendant are utterly charming. Royal collectors were particularly fascinated by minuscule creations that posed a technical challenge to the craftsman. Such objects formed a special sub-category in the Kunstkammer and were given the Latin name Mirabilia - in German Wunderwerke, miracles of human ingenuity and craftsmanship. This tiny cherrystone is just such a Wunderwerk! It has always been one of the most popular attractions in the Green Vault. The Imperial Councillor and Reichspfennigsmeister Christoph von Loß from Pillnitz gave this marvellous little pendant to Elector Christian the First in 1589.

Well, did you count the heads? Traditionally, there are supposed to be 185 of them, but more recent counts say 113. What makes it difficult is that they get smaller and smaller – until they’re just little bumps. These heads represent the clerical and lay estates.

The Dresden cherrystone used to have a rival. At the end of the eighteenth century, there was another one in the Berlin Kunstkammer that was supposed to have 265 faces. Even allowing for a bit of exaggeration, it must have been an amazing sight. Unfortunately, it has disappeared.

These cherrystones were usually examined through a glass, and that‘s how they were carved – each individual head shaped with a minute instrument while the craftsman peered through his magnifying glass.