Table Settings for Hundreds
By Judy Evans
@JudyEv (326220)
Rockingham, Australia
January 13, 2016 7:27pm CST
On our recent holiday in Europe we spent ten days in Vienna as we had a good friend there. One of the places we visited was the Sisi Museum and Imperial Apartments. Sisi was the wife of Franz Joseph I, Emperor of Russia and King of Hungary. Her story is fascinating in itself and deserves a post of its own.
We were only allowed to take photos of the rooms displaying the china and silverware used for entertaining dignitaries.
These displays were mind-blowing – again – as there was gold, silver and fine china in vast quantities, enough for settings for hundred people. We were told that only two people knew how to fold the napkins containing the bread rolls and that it was a highly kept secret. I don't think we really believed that. What do you think?
I created this video with the YouTube Slideshow Creator (http://www.youtube.com/upload)
33 people like this
32 responses
. The napkins are beautifully done.
@allknowing (130176)
• India
14 Jan 16
Even in homes tables used to be set in style. I used to be quite crazy trying to add some class but not any more. Doing up napkins used to be part of that routine.
These days food is served straight from cooking dishes. (lol).
3 people like this
@allknowing (130176)
• India
14 Jan 16
@JudyEv I know what you mean. Our sets are all stored and hardly used.
2 people like this
@arthurchappell (45002)
• Preston, England
14 Jan 16
sounds an unlikely yarn - it would be easy to work out the sequence by careful unfolding and taking notes
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@arthurchappell (45002)
• Preston, England
15 Jan 16
@JudyEv one would be enough
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (326220)
• Rockingham, Australia
16 Jan 16
@arthurchappell True - and someone with a bit of experience with origami could probably figure it out.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (326220)
• Rockingham, Australia
14 Jan 16
@MALUSE @arthurchappell I thought about just unfolding it carefully, etc but it's possible outsiders never get to unfold one. And at the end of the meal there wouldn't be many still intact.
2 people like this
@BelleStarr (61047)
• United States
14 Jan 16
Funny how a woman who was probably anorexic had so much dinnerware isn't it?
2 people like this
@BelleStarr (61047)
• United States
14 Jan 16
@JudyEv Yes it appears to have been a one-sided love affair. She cared just way to much about her appearance.
2 people like this
@JudyEv (326220)
• Rockingham, Australia
14 Jan 16
@BelleStarr She is certainly a great tourist attraction. I felt really sorry for the husband.
2 people like this
@DianneN (247219)
• United States
14 Jan 16
We have visited many castles, mansions, chateaux, etc. on our travels. Many rooms were off limits to photography, but many were not. I got some of my best decorating ideas from them for my home up north. Do you know the secret of folding napkins for bread rolls? Lovely photos!
2 people like this
@kaka135 (14916)
• Malaysia
14 Jan 16
Wow, those tableware are really amazing. I like the napkins folding, they look really pretty, especially the one with the bread rolls. Hope the method of folding will be passed down to others and not get lost.
I would be really stressful when using those tableware. 
2 people like this
@LeaPea2417 (36515)
• Toccoa, Georgia
14 Jan 16
That is very interesting. I bet it was a highly kept secret.
2 people like this
@garymarsh6 (23393)
• United Kingdom
14 Jan 16
When the Queen hosts a state banquet it takes 8 people three weeks to unpack the 4,000 piece grand dinner set purchased two hundred years ago for the state banquet along with cutlery and 6 glasses per person. It takes months of preparation to host a banquet. It is so precise when they lay the table it is measured with a stick to make sure everything fits in place. Everything is washed by hand. Imagine if you dropped one of those plates they are irreplaceable.
2 people like this
@PainsOnSlate (21854)
• Canada
14 Jan 16
I think anyone can learn how to fold a napkin. ILl have to look in my Mexico photos. I took pictures of all bed decorations made out of towels and that one looked familiar. The China was awesome, so beautiful. I don't care about the gold but that huge amount was amazing.
2 people like this
@JudyEv (326220)
• Rockingham, Australia
21 Jan 16
And there was so much of it. Enough for several hundred settings I think and all matching.
@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
18 Jan 16
Not sure about the napkins, but happy it was not me doing the cooking for all of those people!
1 person likes this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
16 Jan 16
I would believe any old silly tradition used by any royal family. Secrets is one of the things they held most dear.
1 person likes this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
17 Jan 16
@JudyEv This is true of anyone in the public eye. How do they ever make friends or go out to enjoy themselves like the rest of us?
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@JudyEv (326220)
• Rockingham, Australia
17 Jan 16
@ElizabethWallace Another case of 'be careful what you wish for'. Fame in this instance. Or maybe notoriety.
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@tuttiharris (1338)
• Chattanooga, Tennessee
21 Jan 16
How beautiful that tableware is. Is the gold real gold or is it gold plated. I love tableware and table settings. I wish I knew how to fold those napkins in the swan shape. Thank you so much for this awesome video.. Love to you.
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