Even history books mention how rich the Carpathians are in mineral resources, for example, in the second half of the 13th century, it provided five sixths of Europe’s gold production and one fourth of its silver production. Not to mention salt mining and other raw materials. Our exhibition itself seeks to showcase this richness. However, there is a type of raw material that is almost completely missing from the Carpathians, and that is gemstones. The only gemstone mine in the Carpathians operated in Červenica, where precious opal was mined from the Middle Ages until 1922. This popular gem, also known as the “Hungarian opal”, has found in many famous jewels, such as the pendant of Queen Isabella Jagiellon (1519-1559), the wedding jewellery of Princess Stéphanie of Belgium (1864-1945) or the badge of the Order of the Golden Fleece.
In the picture: Queen Isabella’s pendant (necklace) with polished sections of precious opal from Červenica (Slovakia). According to tradition, this jewellery was worn by Queen Isabella Jagiellon (1519-1559), the wife of John Szapolyai. Collection of the Hungarian National Museum. Photo by Judit Kardos.