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July 25th, 2008
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The caretaker of the crown

Face to face with a national treasure and its keeper
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By Ondřej Bouda
Staff Writer, The Prague Post

Last Thursday, at the ceremonial unlocking of the Bohemian Crown Jewels, I had the humbling experience of standing a meter from the national treasures without anything in between, before they were placed in a glass security case. Not even the pushing and shoving mass of other journalists fighting for the best photo angle could mar the experience. The sight of the jewels — which radiate with history and beauty — could change even the starkest republican into a loyal royalist.

And I’m not the only one who feels that way.
“Whenever I see the original crown jewels, I feel honored to be in their presence,” Jiří Belda, the official caretaker of the jewels, told me that evening. Charged with cleaning and maintaining the ornaments since 1966, Belda has likely spent more time with them than any other person dead or alive, including ruling monarchs who could only use them on special occasions. “When we made a copy of the crown in 1967, we spent a year at the castle with daily access to the jewels,” he said, referring to replicas made for an international exhibition.
When the crown jewels are brought out for an exhibition, it’s Belda who cleans and inspects them, as he did before the jewels were put on the display last week.
“They are in perfect shape,” he said, “and I hope that they will remain so for a long time to come.”
They will continue to be in the best of hands for many years as Belda has already trained his successor to take care of the jewels once he retires. The job will stay in the family through his son. He is also a goldsmith and already helps his father with the jewels, and participated in creating a second copy of them in 1999.

Ondřej Bouda can be reached at news@praguepost.com


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