The Kunstkammer Has Been Crowned

View of the exhibition Bartholomeus Spranger: Splendor and Eroticism in Imperial Prague, closing this Sunday, February 1

«In my December 30 post "Crown the Kunstkammer!" I challenged readers to suggest objects that would make worthy additions to the Kunstkammer, or chamber of wonders, in the exhibition Bartholomeus Spranger: Splendor and Eroticism in Imperial Prague. Cheers to all who participated! Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II, Spranger's patron and the founder of the Prague Kunstkammer, would have found these additions tantalizing. I thank you for the stimulating ideas you contributed both in the comments on the post and on Facebook, and would like to highlight a few of my favorite submissions.»

Victor Cinti's selection of a container for magical substances ingeniously reflects Rudolf's pursuits into alchemy, and the exoticism of the East would have delighted the emperor.

Container for Magical Substances (Perminangken?), 19th–early 20th century. Indonesia, Sumatra. Toba Batak people. Wood, trade ceramic; H. 10 in. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Gift of Fred and Rita Richman, 1988 (1988.143.38a, b)

Jennifer Franks was right on the money with her comment that no Kunstkammer is complete without a Nautilus cup, and she aptly suggested a most perfect specimen dated 1602!

Nautilus cup, 1602. Dutch, Utrecht. Nautilus shell, silver gilt; H. 11 x W. 6 5/8 x D. 4 1/4 in. (27.9 x 16.8 x 10.8 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917 (17.190.604)

Had Rudolf lived in the nineteenth century, the cryptic and erotic French photograph of a female nude with a mask, picked by Henry Bottjer, would be perfect, and no doubt viewed in private by the emperor.

Unknown (French). Female nude with mask, ca. 1870. Albumen silver print from glass negative; 10 1/4 x 7 1/2 in. (26 x 19.1 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Gilman Collection, Gift of The Howard Gilman Foundation, 2005 (2005.100.208)

This Sunday, February 1, is your last chance to catch the exhibition before it closes! I encourage you to see it for yourself, to imagine what you might place in the empty spaces in our Kunstkammer, and to enjoy the fascinating work of Bartholomeus Spranger.