Treasury - Thesaurus Basilicae Sancti Stephani Regis
In 2011, the Treasury of St. Stephen's Basilica welcomed visitors into a new
space, three times the size of the previous one. Many of the objects on display
are still in use today, so this is more than just a museum exhibition. It offers a
glimpse into the innermost liturgical life of the Basilica’s community. The first
hall, with its vaulted ceiling, displays memorabilia from the construction of the
Basilica and its centuries-long history: models, plaster casts, the papal letter that
gave the Basilica its title of "basilica minor", special pieces such as the image of
the Holy Family of Murillo, the bronze door of Csaba Ozsvári, a Herend
porcelain copy of the Holy Crown and a complete crown guard's vestments. The
two interior rooms of the Treasury are a symbolic reliquary chapel and there is a
tower room connected to it. The most precious liturgical objects are on display
here: vestments (including the largest monstrance in the country from 1938),
chalices (including a gift from Pope Blessed John Paul II from 1991), the
utensils for the administration of the various sacraments, silver perpetuals,
incense, candlesticks, shepherd's crooks and ornate liturgical vestments - relics
of two centuries of sacred art. The significance of the renewed Treasury was
enhanced by the rich selection of the prelate Cardinal József Mindszenty’s
personal utensils and liturgical objects.