The Crown Prince and His Ambassador: Two Individuals in the Service of Roman Archaeology

Friedrich Wilhelm, Crown Prince of Prussia (king 1840- 1861) and Christian Carl Josias Bunsen shared a romantic passion for the city of Rome. Ever since their first meeting in 1827, the two men became close friends and exchanged ideas in an intimate correspondence. Bunsen, as the Prussian envoy to Rome, was an important confidant for the Crown Prince, serving as his main source of information regarding the theological, archaeological and topographical developments of the city. The Prussian Crown Prince was greatly interested in the archaeological excavations in Rome, especially on the Forum Romanum and the Imperial Fora. Bunsen’s scholarly researches helped provide the firm historical basis for some of the prince’s architectural endeavours in Berlin and elsewhere, i.e. the Museumsinsel and the Friedenskirche.