Curator of the Blood Red River
Overview
The Red River Museum was first constructed in 381YE but an attack by a small family of Faraden left it in ruins until it was rebuilt and expanded. The expansion by the Imperial Senate during the Spring Equinox 385YE created the position of Curator to oversee the museum and to ensure that any such attack in the future would be thwarted.
Responsibilities
The Curator of the Blood Red River is responsible for maintaining the museum itself, and for acquiring new exhibits. If anything were to threaten the good operation of the museum, it would be the responsibility of the Curator to address those problems.
Powers
A Portion of Liao
The sinecure provides 15 doses of liao to the Curator each season, to be used as they see fit.
Donations to the Museum
The Blood Red River Museum draws pilgrims from across the Empire, especially from the other cities of the League. Some visitors wish to make donations to the running of the museum or offer bequests of artwork to the Curator to encourage a steady stream of visitors. The Curator of the Blood Red River receives 8 crowns each season from these donations.
Appointment
The Curator of the Blood Red River is a national position appointed by the Synod. It is elected by judgement of the National Assembly of the League.
The title can be held by any citizen of the League. The Curator has tenure and serves until they die or step down. They can be revoked by the General Assembly, the League National Assembly, and by the Assembly of the Nine.
| Summit | Elected | Votes |
|---|---|---|
| Summer Solstice 385YE | Astrid Fjellrevening Rezia di Tassato | 250 Votes |
Recent Elections
This title is currently held by Astrid Fjellrevening Rezia di Tassato. This title has tenure, the occupant may hold the title until it is revoked, they die or they relinquish the position. The table to the right shows the citizens who have been elected to hold this title in the years since Empress Britta died.
Blood Red River Museum
This art museum was commissioned by Cesare Sanguineo Rezia di Tassato, paid for by the Bloody Butchers Guild of Temeschwar, and taking advantage of the opportunity offered by the potent Night magic enchantment that blanketed the Empire toward the end of 380YE. Completed shortly before the Summer Solstice 381YE, it stands grandly in Tassato Mestra on the western bank of the Vassa, not far from the Printers Guild Museum of Wonders.
A magnificent structure of shining white granite and red brick, the interior is richly embellished with white and gold gilded rococo together with sumptuous red and black velvet drapes. The immense entrance hall boasts an impressive series of historical friezes celebrating modern great works, designed to inspire visitors with Pride. The first celebrates the unification of Regario and Mestra by Anabella di Regario; the second celebrates the First Feast thrown by the First Butcher for the First Empress and the leaders of the League; the third marks the foundation of the Imperial Mint by Emperor Giovanni (although the artists have played loose with history by showing him conversing with the museum's benefactor, Lorenzo 'La Volpe', who was briefly Master of the Imperial Mint); the fourth commemorates the coronation of Imperatrix Lisabetta, with a particular emphasis on Senator Cesare's part in organising the subsequent celebrations. Other displays commemorate the Blood Red Roads project, the Colossus of Sarvos, the Bloody Great Theatre of Temeschwar, the Butchers Guildhall in Temeschwar, and other structures paid for by the Bloody Butchers.
It is easy to see why some critics might have dismissed the museum as being a monument to Lorenzo's ambition, rather than a place to inspire pride in League citizens! Indeed, several wags have queried why there is so much emphasis on Temeschwar in a museum intended to inspire Tassatans. Elsewhere in the museum, there are displays of historical artefacts relevant to Tassato, the League or the Empire today, but in some ways their display appears to be more of an afterthought than the purpose for which this gaudy museum was constructed.
The museum was rebuilt and expanded after an arson attack by a small family of Faraden. While the museum was rebuilt along similar lines where possible, the new wing includes an exhibition curated by Astrid Fjellrevening Rezia di Tassato on the history of true liao. It features items of historical significance discovered after past life visions, information on the origins of liao, and a small section telling the story of Lord Colwyn de Rondell's past life vision which led to the vandalism of the original museum.