Crown Treasury and Armoury
Wawel 5
Of all the insignia of royal power kept here, the most precious has survived to our times: the coronation sword of the first Polish monarchs – Szczerbiec: the Notched Sword.
The current exhibition alludes to the bygone time of splendour and magnificence of the place, when the most precious insignia of royal power were stored in the Crown Treasury together with the valuables and curiosities that formed the official assets of the state. In 1795, after the third partition of Poland, the Treasury was nearly entirely looted by the Prussians entering Kraków, and the Polish coronation insignia were destroyed. Among the few preserved items, besides the sword of King Sigismund the Old (Zygmunt Stary), the Notched Sword (Szczerbiec) is the most precious: one of the most important objects of Polish heritage. Although it most probably dates back only to the 13th century, legend holds that it was a gift from the German Emperor, Otto III, who supposedly entrusted it – and this together with the crown and the orb (apple) – to the first Polish king, Boleslaus the Brave (Bolesław Chrobry). The Armoury, situated close to the Treasury, houses pole, thrusting, and blade slashing weapons, suites of armour, shields and bucklers, helmets, mortars, and copies of the banners of the Order of Teutonic Knights captured during the Battle of Grunwald, fought against the Order in 1410.
Tickets: normal PLN 39, concessions PLN 28