King Charles' coronation is surely set to be a spectacular event. However, the monarch has chosen to step away from the grandeur and add some modern touches to the event. Charles III, for example, will take a shorter route to Westminster Abbey, but in the same carriage as his mother. The length of the service is expected to be shorter than the three-hour service that installed Elizabeth II.
Much of the priceless coronation regalia used for centuries will be part of crowning both Charles and Camilla, including five symbolic swords, two sceptres and the Sovereign’s Ring of sapphire with a ruby cross set in diamonds, AP reported.
Here are details of the symbolic items to be used during the coronation. Camilla will wear Queen Mary's crown. She will hold a sceptre made of ivory, a controversial item as heir to the crown William has campaigned against illegal animal part trafficking.
Charles will be crowned the king with the St. Edward’s Crown, the centrepiece of the Crown Jewels viewed by millions of people every year at the Tower of London. The crown has a solid gold frame set with rubies, sapphires, amethysts, tourmalines, diamonds, garnets and topazes. It has a purple cap; it was used for the coronation of Elizabeth II and has been refitted for her son. The crown weighs 2.3 kg. After the coronation, Charles will switch to a lighter, Imperial State Crown weighing 1.06 kg. It is fitted with 2,868 diamonds, 269 pearls, 17 sapphires and 11 emeralds.
Charles will hold a sceptre, which features the Cullinan I diamond, weighing about 106 gms-- the largest colourless cut diamond in the world. Charles will also wear a coronation ring, which dates back to 1831-- it is a sapphire ring with a ruby cross set in diamonds.
Other paraphernalia includes the Sovereign's Orb, representing the monarch's power and the Christian world. It is surrounded by diamonds, rubies, emeralds, sapphires and pearls. There is also the ampulla and the coronation spoon, used to anoint the monarch with holy oil and the stone of scone, a 152-kg stone, an ancient symbol of Scotland's monarchy. The stone kept in Scotland, returns to Westminster Abbey for coronations.
