Bohemian mineralogy in the early 19th century: the Vaterländisches Museum in Böhmen

The Vaterländisches Museum in Prague was officially founded in 1822 by Caspar and Franz Sternberg as a manifestation of Bohemian nationalism. It aimed at 1) the education of the public, 2) the sponsorship of Bohemian scientific and cultural research, and 3) the economical utilization of scientific knowledge. Under these aspects also the development of the oryctognostic collection of the museum should be regarded. In 1818, private mineral collections were donated. After its official opening in 1822, the united collections were split into two parts, a systematic and a local native collection. The first was basically distinguished by a prominent sortiment of gems, particularly by the typical garnet species and varieties, furthermore by the meteorites of Elbogen, Zˇ ebrak and Bohumilitz and by a rich portion of metals and their ores. The second exposed its specimens to the observer in an instructive disposition of their natural deposit referring to their topographic location along the Bohemian mountain ranges and formations. The national endeavours behind the museum’s enterprises were additionally manifested in its ambition in scientific research, which in the field of mineralogy has been largely done by the collection’s curator Franz-Xaver Zippe.