The gem became part of the Crown Jewels after 11-year-old Maharaja Duleep Singh was forced to surrender it after the conquest of the Punjab in 1849. That crown contains the famous Koh-i-noor diamond that India, Pakistan and Iran all claim. On Saturday, the scepter will be handed to Charles as a symbol of his temporal power.Ĭullinan II, a cushion-shaped gem of 317.4 carats, is mounted on the front of the Imperial State Crown that Charles will wear as he leaves Westminster Abbey.Ĭharles sidestepped a similar controversy when Buckingham Palace announced that his wife, Camilla, wouldn’t wear the crown of Queen Elizabeth, the queen mother, on coronation day. ![]() Two stones cut from the Cullinan Diamond - the largest rough diamond ever found - will feature prominently in the coronation, fueling controversy the royal family would rather avoid.įor many in South Africa, where the original stone was found in 1905, the gems are a symbol of colonial oppression under British rule and they should be returned.Ĭullinan I, a huge drop-shaped stone weighing 530.2 carats, is mounted in the Sovereign’s Sceptre with Cross. The 26.7-centimeter (10.5-inch) spoon is believed to have been made during the 12th Century for either King Henry II or King Richard I, and may have originally been used for mixing water and wine, according to the Royal Collection Trust. While the monarch is no longer considered divine, the ceremony confirms his status as supreme governor of the Church of England. The ceremony has roots in the biblical story of the anointing of King Solomon and was originally designed to confirm that the sovereign was appointed directly by God. ![]() The spoon is central to the most sacred part of the coronation ceremony, when the Archbishop of Canterbury will pour holy oil from an eagle-shaped ampulla, or flask, into the spoon and then rub it on the king’s hands, breast and head. After King Charles I was executed in 1649, the rest of the collection was either melted down or sold off as Parliament sought to abolish the monarchy forever. The gold-plated silver Coronation Spoon is the only piece of the coronation regalia that survived the English Civil War. In recent days, the stone was temporarily removed from its current home at Edinburgh Castle in a ceremony overseen by Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf, then transported to the abbey, where a special service was held to mark its return. In 1996, Prime Minister John Major returned the stone to Scotland, with the understanding that it would come back to England for use in future coronations. Before that time, it was used as the coronation stone for Irish kings. Fergus Mor MacEirc, the founder of Scotland’s royal line, reputedly brought the stone with him when he moved his seat from Ireland to Scotland around 498, Westminster Abbey said. The stone's history goes back much further, however. ![]() Abbott slept in this chair 5-6 July 1800.”Įdward I had the chair built specifically to enclose the Stone of Scone, known by Scots as the Stone of Destiny, after he forcibly took the artifact from Scotland and moved it to the abbey in the late 13th Century. The gold has long since worn away and the chair is now pocked with graffiti, including one message that reads “P. The 2.05-meter (6 feet 9 inches) tall chair is made of oak and was originally covered in gold leaf and colored glass. The chair has been part of every coronation since 1308. The crown will be placed on Charles’ head as he sits in the Coronation Chair suspended over the Stone of Scone (pronounced “scoon”) - the sacred slab of sandstone on which Scottish kings were crowned. King Charles III will sit atop more than 1,500 years of Irish, Scottish and English history when he is crowned Saturday at Westminster Abbey. Here are five artifacts that will play a central role in Saturday’s events. And people from all four nations of the United Kingdom, as well as the Commonwealth, will take part. Faith leaders from outside the Church of England will take an active role in the ceremony for the first time. This coronation will be shorter and more inclusive than his mother’s in 1953. The new king has already recognized these challenges by adjusting the coronation festivities to the realities of today. LONDON (AP) - King Charles III’s coronation is a chance to unite people with the history and pageantry of the monarchy, but those traditions are also full of potential controversies as he tries to show that the monarchy still has a role to play in modern Britain.
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