The Special Exhibit

At the beginning of the 20th century, three young men from the Netherlands – Abraham Mossel, Frans van der Hoorn and Gerard Perfors – were motivated by the same ideals to embark on an ambitious adventure. As pacifists, vegetarians and Esperanto speakers, they were committed to social equality and sought freedom in nature. On 16 July 1911, in Amsterdam, they began a journey around the world that they had planned for eight years, but that was brought to an abrupt end by the First World War. They made their way as far as Palestine, mostly on foot, via Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Austria, Eastern Europe, and Egypt.

In the first half of the 16th century, Siegmund Baron von Herberstein travelled all over Europe as an envoy of the House of Habsburg, including to the court of the Grand Duke of Moscow. His activities as a diplomat in the service of the Emperor were also reflected in his outward appearance. Unusually for the time, however, Herberstein added six full-page woodcuts of himself to his autobiography "Sigmund Freyherr zů Herberstain Neyperg vnd Guttenhag oberster Erbcamrer vnd oberster Druchsas in Kärnttn [...]", printed in Vienna in 1560. They show him in the splendid robes he wore at audiences with the Habsburg Emperor, the Grand Duke of Moscow or the Turkish Sultan, or which he had received as gifts from these rulers.