The Sun.
London, England, 1838-06-28 00:00:00

THE CORONATION.

Mr. Thompson, in his work on
The Processions and Ceremonies
observed in the Coronation of the
Kings and Queens of England,'
gives the following account of
KING EDWARD'S CHAIR.

" This chair (commonly called
St. Edward's chair) is an ancient
seat of solid, hard wood, with back
and sides of the same, variously
painted, in which the kings of
Scotland were in former periods
constantly crowned ; but, having
been. brought out of the kingdom
by King Edward 1., in the year
1296, after he had totally overcome
John Baliol king of Scots, it has
ever since remained in the abbey of
Westminster, and has been the
royal chair in which the succeeding
kings and queens of this realm have
been inaugurated. It is in height
6 ft. 7 in., in breadth at the bot-
tom, 38 in., and in depth 24 in. ;
from the seat to the bottom is 25 in.,
the breadth of the seat within the
sides is 28 in., and the depth 18 in.
At 9 inches from the ground is a
board, supported at the four corners
by as many lions. Between the
seat and this board is enclosed a
stone, commonly called Jacob's, or
the Fatal l‘larble Stone, which is
an oblong, of about 22 in. in length,
13 in. broad, and 11 in. deep ; of a
steel colour, mixed with some veins
of red. History relates that it is
the stone whereon the patriarch
Jacob laid his head in the plain of
Luz. It is also added that it was
brought to Brigantia, in the king-
dom of Gallicia in Spain, in which
place Gathol king of Scots, sat on
it as his throne. Thence it was
conveyed into Ireland by Simon
Brach, who was king of Scots, about
700 years before Christ's time ;
from thence into Scotland by king'
Fergus, about 370 years after-
wards ; and, in the year 850, it was'
placed in the abbey of Scone, in
the sheriffdom of Perth, by King
Kenneth, who caused it to be en-
closed in thi', wooden chair, and a
phophetical verse to be engraved,l
of which the following is a trans-
lation

' Should fate nc►t fail, where'Qr this stone
is found
The Scots shall monarchs of that realm
be cr owu'd.'

" This i s the more remakable by
its having been fulfilled in the per-
, son of King James 1., grandfather
o the P rincess Sophia, electress
iovv.aser of Hanover, grandmother
to hini George 11., who was
:r to his We Majesty,
tieorge This antique regal
chair, hAvi ng (together with the
golden sc,eptre and crown of Scot-
land) beet t solemnly offered by
Ring Edw.ard I. to St. Edwarfl
the Co nfesstor, in the year 1297
(from A vhence it derives the appel-
lation of St. Edward's chair), has
ever sii )ce been kept in the chapel
called II This name ; with a tablet
afaxe(l.4 to it, whereon several Latin
.verPizs are written, in the old Eng-
-11,8.11. character. The ornaments of
„41 ills chair consist of crockets and
set-work, richly gilt. It has a
cushion, covered with the same ma-
terials. The stone maintains its
usual place under the seat of the
chair, but is hid from observation
by the fringe which surrounds it."

Tn REGALIA;
These are—St. Edward's Staff—
the Spurs the Sceptre with the
Cross—the Pointed Sword of Tem-
poral Justice—the Sword of Mercy
—the Sword of State—the Sceptre
with the Dove—the Orb—St. Ed-
ward's Crown—the Patina, the Cha-
lice, and the Bible.
St. Edward's Staff, in length four
feet eleven inches and a half, is a
sceptre of gold, having a foot of
steel about four inches and a quar-
ter in length, with a mound and
-Toss at the top ; the ornaments are
lso of gold, and the diameter is up-
' mrds of three-quarters of an inch.
The Spurs, called the great gold-
! I Spurs, are elaborately wrought ;
1 ey have no rowels, but end in an
lamented point.
The Sceptre with the Cross, or
ei !ptre Royal, is likewise of gold,
to handle plain, and the upper part
re athed ;itis in length two feet nine
te}i es and a quarter, and is of the
44e thickness as the former. The
11 nt i 1 't the lower part is enriched
11411 m thies, emeralds, and small
4. Lioudt 1-I a half ; and th
bove
e space of five
I, in length, a
'"es ant
ile handle is elegantly embellished
vith siinda r precious stones. The
) a fleur-de-lis, with six
°P rises int(
ea ich three are upright,
yes, of wh r three are hanging
11 the othe:, 'ched with precious
°v'
'n, all enr.;
0,1 'ie fleur-de-lis issues
es ; out of tA
410und made t fan amethyst, set
)4 le-diamonds, and
11 d with tab,
I.:r the mound a cross, wholly
's stones, and a
I.`l ed with precic ,u
,e table-diamor id ii 1 the centre.
of the Tem-
,r ne Sword of T. .
' alit . d ustice
i._. Y, or Tiny 1 Swora, `, is sharp-
r''ed ; the if.! handle
ngth of the n inch
o'°4linclies, the pommel a cross
wreelw
arters, and the