largest reserve, that of Germany, is held at the Deutsche Bundesbank in Frankfurt am Main, the Federal Reserve Bank in New York and the Bank of England in London. The third, held by the IMF, is in a number of in designated deposits. These treasuries are believed to satisfy a number of essential criteria, which include cost efficiency, security, and the ability to liquidate reserves at short notice. Church treasuries The Church has a variety of treasures that have spiritual or religious value rather than financial worth; these are housed in treasuries at most cathedrals. These take the form of relics, icons, manuscripts, votive offerings and liturgical garments. Of particular note are the St Chad Gospels at Lichfield Cathedral, and the Codex Eyckensis at St Catherine's Church, Maaseik. The treasury at Aachen cathedral has a number of valuable artifacts, such as the Cross of Lothair and the Treasury Gospels. Private treasuries Collections of personal treasures, where the objects assembled are there because of the interest of the collector, rather than any intrinsic value, have been seen since the times of the Ancient Greeks, and more particularly, the Romans. For example, various Roman emperors devoted considerable effort to bring Egyptian obelisks from the Middle East to Rome, or had copies made in Rome itself. In medieval times a number of monarchs had menageries of exotic beasts; Henry III (r.1216-1292) owned three leopards, a polar bear and an African elephant, while emperor Frederick II (r.1220-1250) owned giraffes, cheetahs, lynxes, leopards, exotic birds and an elephant, and had a variety of rare falcons. The private collection of curiosities in England has been ascribed to 16th century polymath Francis Bacon, and in Europe to the emperor Rudolph II. In Russia this was pioneered by tsar Peter the Great. Notable modern collections include the Waddesdon and the Wallace collections in Britain, and the Getty and Guggenheim collections in the USA. See also Bank Finance Minister Fiscus Mint Treasury management HM Treasury (United Kingdom) United States Department of the Treasury Government bond References External links Government institutions