The Crown Jewels is comprised of over 140 items containing more than 23,000 precious stones, the most famous of which are the Cullinan I and Cullinan II diamonds, cut from the 3,106-carat Cullinan Diamond, the largest gem-quality rough ever found. Most of these items, known as the regalia, are used in the coronation.
The most important of these is St Edward’s Crown, made in 1661 for the coronation of Charles II. The solid gold crown weighs five pounds and boasts 440 gemstones.
The queen hasn’t worn St Edward’s Crown since her coronation. A second crown—the Imperial State Crown, which is lighter—was placed on her head at the end of the coronation ritual. She still wears it for most state openings of Parliament.
Only she, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and the crown jeweler are allowed to touch St Edward’s Crown.
During the queen’s interview, Bruce asked if the crown could be placed closer to the queen as they discussed it. She grabbed it roughly with both hands, telling Bruce simply: “This is what I do when I wear it.”
Other gems of wisdom from the queen included: “Fortunately, my father and I have about the same sort of shaped head … once you put (the crown) on it stays.” And, “You can’t look down to read the speech; you have to take the speech up because if you did, your neck would break, it would fall off.”
The Crown Jewels are so important to England that special care was taken to hide them from the Nazis during World War II.
A royal librarian recently unearthed evidence that showed that the jewels were stored in a secret room 60 feet below Windsor Castle, which could only be accessed by descending a very long ladder.
CZ Crown
Metal: 925 Sterling Silver
Width: 7 mm
Gemstone Type: Cubic Zirconia (CZ)
Gemstone Colour: White
Fleur de Lis CZ Crown
Metal: 925 Sterling SilverWidth: 2 mm
Gemstone Type: Cubic Zirconia (CZ)
Feature: Polish
