Cupola close up

Look closely, and you’ll see each segment is adorned by a past emperor. From left to right, we have:

• Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor (1685–1740), father of Maria Theresa
• Franz Josef I, Emperor of Austria & King of Hungary etc… (1830–1916) The guy who had this museum built, so it’s fitting that his face is looking down the central hall
• Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor (1459–1519). Fun fact: he was never crowned by the Pope, up until then an unbroken tradition for Holy Roman Emperors

Looking through other unposted photos I took of the cupola, we’ve also got HRE Charles V (1500–1558); Archduke Leopold Wilhelm of Austria (1614–1662), younger brother of HRE Ferdinand III; and Archduke Albert VII of Austria (1559–1621), fifth son of HRE Maximilian II. There are still two I missed completely. I’m surprised they went for Archdukes when I’m sure there were plenty of perfectly serviceable Emperors in the history books. Maybe Franz Josef didn’t like them?