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may 1951 coronation supplement page ibvbjt priceless treasures crown jewels housed in tower of london in the wakefield tower a vaulted chamber of the tower of london where henry vi was imprisoned and murdered are housed the crown jewels which will figure in the coro nation ceremony visitors gaze spellbound at the lustrous gold orbs the royal sceptre containing the largest cut diamond in the world and the fabulous imperial state crown which contains 2783 diamonds 277 pearls 17 sapphires 11 emeralds and 5 rubies these however are only a few of the items constituting the royal regalia which include st edwards staff the spoon and ampulla the golden spurs the state swords the orb ring sceptres and the crowns their value cannot be stated because obviously they would never be put up for sale but certainly they are worth intrinsically many millions of dollars a fine haul for a burglar if he was rash enough to wsk electrocution or de capitation two penalties which it is rumored would have to be faced by a prospective thief the crown jewels have had their vicissitudes once the regalia were housed in westminster abbey but bits and pieces had a habit of disappearingjohowing an attempt to rob the abbey in the reign of henry iii the jewels were remov ed to the tower of london the inv pregnable stronghold by the river thames which took nearly 200 years to build between 1078 and 1272 thief rewarded even at the tower of london the jewels were still a temptation an irish adventurer colonel blood wheedled his way into the confi dence of the assistant keeper over powered him with the help of two accomplices and nearly got away with the state crown and orb the sequel was strange for in stead of being executed the thief was rewarded by king charles ii with a pension of 500 a year a large sum in those days most people assume that all the regalia are of great antiquity this however is not the case dur ing the commonwealth regime of oliver cromwell from 1549 to the sovereign after the anointing as an emblem of chivalry but since the coronation of queen anne it has been the custom of the lord great chamberlain simply to touch the sovereigns heels with them the four swords of state are among the most beautiful ex amples of workmanship in the world each sword has a separate symbolical significance for in stance the jewelled sword of state which at state openings of parlia ment is carried point upwards be fore the sovereign symbolises office goldencased eword this sword was made for the coronation of george iv in 1s21 at a cost of 6000 its gold scab bard is covered with emblems of the united kingdom the rose of england the thistle of scotland the shamrock of ireland beauti- the crown jewels are housed in the tower of i british travel association rhoto london the great medieval fortress on the banks of dramatic and stirring episodes in englands history the thames which has been the scene of more than any other single building british travel association photos the imperial state crown the crown of england after the coronation ceremony the imperial state crown is worn by the reigning monarch on all state occasions such as the opening of parliament the existing crown was made for queen victoria in 1s3s and embodies many historical gems the black princes ruby sapphire from the ring of edward the confessor queen elizabeths earrings and many other ancient gems in front is the second star of africa weigh ing 309 yi carats cut from the great cullman diamond in all the crown contains 2783 diamonds 277 pearls 17 sapphires 11 emeralds and five rubies st edwards crown copied in the time of charles ii from the ancient crown worn by edward the confessor is the crown of england and is the crown with which all our monarchs since that time have been crowned justice sometimes called the baculum as a symbol of sover eignty it is older than the crown itself as a work of art it is of breathtaking beauty originally made for charles ii and since added to and improved it is nearly three feet long and heavily studded with jewels though the centre is of plain gold to form a grip its pearshaped stone the largest cut diamond in the world weighs 516 s carats and was cut from the cullinan diamond presented to king edward vii by the trans vaal government in 1907 the ori ginal diamond weighed la pounds king edwards crown the final act in the coronation is the placing of king edwards crown upon the queens head it is so large and heavy consisting of over 7 pounds in weight of pure gold and gems that it is doubtful ff the queen will wea it for more than a few minutes before ex changing it for the lighter im perial crown of state king george vi with characteristic patience suffered it for 30 minutes of the coronation service though his father king george v found 1060 the priceless relics which for six centuries had figured in the crowning of englands monarchs were broken down on the restor ation of the monarchy in 1000 strenuous efforts were made to track down and reassemble such pieces as had not been broken or defaced a few gems were recover ed undamaged including the black princes rugby and st edwards sapphire which adorn the imper ial crown today ancient regalia the only pieces of the present regalia which have featured in the crowning of english monarchs be fore 1660 are those two gems queen elizabeths pearl eardrops and the stuart sapphire from the crown of charles ii the spoon and ampulla which will be used in the coronation ceremony for the solemn moment of anointing date from the prereformation days the spoon has been used it is thought in coronation ceremonies for nearly 800 years for its work manship is in the style of the late 12th or early 13th century the ampulla is a gold vessel shaped like an eagle through whose beak the sacramental oil is poured into the spoon the archbishop of can terbury will dip two fingers into fully worked in rubies diamonds and emeralds the hilt and grip are thickly studded with diamonds and other gems symbols of justice the second and third swords represent spiritual and temporal justice and together with the curtana which has a brokenoff point and symbolises mercy are carried on the ceremony before the sovereign it has been the custom to carry three swords of this type ever since the time of richard 1st in 1189 the orb of state delivered into the queens hands during the coronation represents independent sovereignty under the cross the orb used today was made for king charles ii and consists of a globe of gold heavily encrusted with gems the archbishop placing it in the queens right hand will remind her of the significance of the cross surmounting it when you see this orb remember that the whole world is subject to the power and empire of christ our redeemer coronation ring when the orb has been handed british travel association photo the orbs there are two orbs one for the king and the other for the queen the queen orb owes its origin to mary wife of william of orange who insisted on a joint occupation of the throne the kings orb is the larger and is of polished gold studded with large pearls rubies sapphires and emeralds it is placed in the kings right hand im mediately after the king has put on the royal robe british travel association ihoto the three state swords the sword of state in the centre is a twohanded sword the length of blade being 32 inches the handle is of gilt metal the cross- pieces representing the lion and the unicorn the scabbard is dec orated with diamonds rubies and emeralds in designs of the rose the thistle and the shamrock at the coronation the peer who car ries the sword of state delivers it up to the lord chamberlain who over the keeper of the jewel house then hands the coronation i in exchange gives him the jewel- ring to the archbishop who slips j sword the second sword is this spoon and anoint the sever- it on to the third finger of the known as the sword of jestice to eign with the sign of the cross sovereigns right hand the spirituality and the third the golden spurs of solid chas- i next comes the sceptre the sword as the sword of justice to d gold used to be buckled on to ensign of kingly power and i the temporality a few minutes quite enough king edward vii who was in a poor state of health at the time of his coronation was actually crowned with the lighter version and did not wear the heavy crown at all murdered for jewel the great glowing ruby in the larger crown has a bloody and interesting history two inches by one and a half in size in 1367 it was owned by a king of granada in spain who was murdered by a neighbouring prince who wanted to possess the stone in turn he gave it to the black prince who wore it in battle later it saw the tumult and slaughter of agincourt when carried by henry v and the carnage of bosworth field when carried by richard iii when richard was killed the crown was found in a bush crom wells vandals when breaking up the crown jewels valued this fabulous gem at a mere 4 how it was recovered after the restor ation of the monarchy in 1660 it is not known but even then its adventures were not at an end for when colonel blood tried to steal the crown jewels the ruby fell from its setting and was found in the pocket of one of his accom plices stolen gem returned the sapphire in the cross sur mounting the crown is said to have come from the ring worn by edward the confessor at his coronation in 1042 which would make it over 900 years old it was buried with him in westminster abbey lost when his tomb was desecrated and in a mysterious way found its way back to the royal regalia perhaps a priest who connived at its theft and had hidden it was later stricken with remorse and restored it to its proper place britlh travel association rhoto the head of the royal sceptre containing the great star of africa cut from th cullinan diamond