Imperial State Crown Necklace

This set of jewellery is inspired by the motif appearing just
above the lower band of the Imperial State Crown. The
best known of all the crowns, the present Imperial State
Crown was originally designed and made for Queen
Victoria's Coronation in 1838 by Rundell, Bridge and
Rundell, the Crown Jewellers. This crown was used at the
Coronation of King Edward VII and King George V. It was
remade with practically the same stones for King George
VI in 1937. For the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in
1953 the shapes of the arches were altered to reduce the
height. The jewels symbolise a lot more than precious
stones, they represent virtues that a monarch should have.
Pearls represent divine power, sapphires symbolise purity,
chastity and sincerity and diamonds represent power,
strength and courage. The crown itself is mounted in gold
and silver. It weighs 2 pounds 13 ounces and is set 2,868 ,
17 sapphires, 11 emeralds, 5 rubies and 273 pearls. The
most important and mystical of these stones are, St
Edward's Sapphire. This is a square sapphire set in the top
cross. This sapphire is said to have been taken from a ring
found on the finger of Edward the Confessor by Abbot
Lawrence on 13th October 1163, when the body was
being reinterred in Westminster Abbey. Henry II was
present at the time. It was presented to the King, and it
has been used by the Monarch ever since.