Emperor Charles VI's Sarcophagus, Vienna, Austria Poster

"Emperor Charles VI's Sarcophagus, Imperial Crypt, Vienna, Austria" by Catherine Sherman A death's head with the Imperial Crown is a bronze ornament on the sarcophagus of Emperor Charles VI. The skeleton is draped in intricate robes. This large ornament is typical of the designs on the ornately decorated bronze sarcophagi containing the remains of members of the Royal Habsburg family in the Habsburg Dynasty's Imperial Crypt in Vienna, Austria. The intricate designs, including skull motifs and floral patterns, are in a rococo style with "memento mori" reminders. A few, however, are quite plain, such as that of Emperor Joseph II. The crypt, also called the Capuchin Crypt (Kapuzinergruft), is a burial chamber beneath the Capuchin Church and monastery in Vienna. Since 1633, the Imperial Crypt serves as the principal place of entombment for the members of the House of Habsburg. The bones of 145 Habsburg royalty, plus urns containing the hearts or cremated remains of four others, are here, including 12 emperors and 18 empresses. Our guide told us that there was only room for one more sarcophagus in the crypt. The most recent entombment was in 2023. Charles VI (German: Karl; Latin: Carolus; 1 October 1, 1685 – October 20, 1740) was Holy Roman Emperor and ruler of the Austrian Habsburg monarchy from 1711 until his death, succeeding his elder brother, Joseph I. Charles VI was the father of Maria Theresa, who later became empress, and grandfather of Marie Antoinette who became Queen of France through marriage -- and famously lost her head in the French Revolution. The House of Habsburg was once one of the foremost royal houses in Europe, beginning in 1273. Habsburg power grew across Europe, and members of the family became rulers of Spain, Bohemia, Hungary, Croatia, Portugal, Austria, and Mexico as well as other smaller principalities and kingdoms. Much of their expanding power and influence came family members making politically advantageous matches. "Marry, not conquer" was the family motto, although there was warring among the Habsburgs for power, too. They often married close relatives. The Habsburgs continued to rule the Holy Roman Empire until its dissolution in 1806, and ruled Austria, then the new state of Austria-Hungary, until its dissolution in 1918 at the end of World War I. In 1961, the Habsburgs renounced all of their claims to thrones, ending the supremacy of one of the most powerful, long-standing dynasties in European history. Archduke Franz Ferdinand Carl Ludwig Joseph Maria of Austria, a member of the Habsburg dynasty, (December 18,1863 – June 28, 1914) was the heir presumptive to the throne of Austria-Hungary. His assassination in Sarajevo was the most immediate cause of World War I.