A COFFIN FIT FOR A QUEEN
Her Majesty’s casket weighed 250kg and was lined with lead to seal it from moisture, preserving the body for longer and preventing odour from escaping. The coffin, made from English oak, was ready for more than 30 years. Leverton & Sons, an independent family firm of undertakers who’ve worked on royal funerals since the early 1990s, inherited the coffin from the previous firm of royal undertakers.
English oak is rarely used for caskets now, Andrew Leverton, owner of the firm, toldThe Times. “Oak coffins are made from American oak now – I don’t think we could use English oak for a coffin anymore. It would be too expensive. The queen’s coffin has been ready for decades because it’s not something you can just make in a day.”
Because the coffin is so heavy, it needed to be carried by eight burly pallbearers. They had to be at least 1,85m tall and had to wear rubber boots instead of their usual wood and steel footwear to prevent slipping.
Highly symbolic items were on the coffin.
THE IMPERIAL STATE CROWN Resting poignantly on the head of the casket was the dazzling crown worn by British monarchs after their coronation and at the state opening of parliament. It has a frame of solid gold and contains over 3 000 jewels, including 2 868 diamonds, 273 pearls, 17 sapphires, 11 emeralds and five rubies.
It was made in 1937 for the queen’s father, King George VI. One of the crown’s diamonds is the Cullinan II, which is derived from the Cullinan I, the biggest uncut diamond ever unearthed, which was mined in South Africa.
THE SOVEREIGN ORB The orb is presented to British monarchs at their coronations and serves as “a symbol of divine power over the world”. It was originally made in 1661 for Charles II’s coronation and has been used for every royal coronation since. The orb is made of gold and mounted with emeralds, diamonds, rubies, sapphires, pearls and one amethyst.
SOVEREIGN’S SCEPTRE The one-metre-long sceptre, which is also part of coronation regalia dating back to 1661, represents the monarch’s power on Earth. It holds a piece of the Cullinan I diamond – also known as the First Star of Africa – which was added by King GeorgeVin 1910 and has 333 diamonds, 31 rubies, seven sapphires, one amethyst, six spinels and 15 emeralds.
THE FLOWERS The wreath atop the coffin at the state funeral features pink roses, rosemary and plants from the gardens of Buckingham Palace, Clarence House and Highgrove House. In the centre of the wreath was a sprig of myrtle taken from the queen’s wedding bouquet. The note in the centre from her son and heir read: “In loving and devoted memory. Charles R.”