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Karadjordje’s
signet ring
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COLLECTION OF SEALS
The
Historical Museum of Serbia’s collection of seals consists of about 180
seal matrices, which once were used either to guarantee the secrecy of the
letters or to authenticate them. Apart from their historical importance,
they have values not only for art history but also for cultural history.
The collection also includes smaller number of seal impressions made in
wax; however, their metal matrices were not preserved. The oldest pieces
are the Turkish ones, from the 18th century, while the most
valuable are those related to the Serbian Revolution and thereafter the
period of Serbian Principality and Kingdom.
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The
restoration of a Serbian state in 1804, or at least some of its attributes
and institutions, was followed by the development of administration on the
model of highly developed European countries, notably Austria. As the most important element
of administration, seals applied to authenticate documents were used from
the very beginning of the uprising. Both the insurgents’ leaders and
institutions realized the importance of seals, which established the
authenticity of their documents and guaranteed the secrecy of their
letters. Seals also had the legal status of a signature; hence their
validity in circumstances of general illiteracy in Serbia.
The
more prominent leaders of the Serbian uprising - voivodes, knezes as well
as state institutions had their seals, while Karadjordje, Luka Lazarevic
and Jakov Nenadovic head two or more and used them according to the type of
correspondence. Metal matrices from the time of Serbian Revolution were
usually made by stamp-cutters - engravers from Voivodina, where the
tradition of seals was highly developed among the wealthier citizens,
craftsmen, guilds, parishes and church representatives. Some of them were
made in Russia. However, as local craftsmen
were not so skilled, their seals could be recognized by their modest design
and rustical treatment.
The
most valuable seals of the collection include Karadjordje’s official seal,
his signet ring, then the seals belonging to Prince Milos Obrenovic and his
son Mihailo, personal seal of King Milan Obrenovic, made of amethyst, as
well as numerous seals of state institutions of the early 19th
century: magistrates, local courts, National Assembly, Lyceum, etc.
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