It’s stone Jim ... but not as we know it!
Star Trek actor hails strange ‘power’ of our coronation relic
AS Star Trek’s Captain James T. Kirk, he explored strange new worlds and boldly went where no man had gone before.
But although his days at the helm of TV’s USS Enterprise are far behind him, actor William Shatner is now on a new adventure – fronting a series about unexplained mysteries, including one involving Scotland’s Stone of Destiny.
The 89-year-old claims that the ancient coronation stone of the nation’s kings is imbued with a strange and spiritual power.
The Canadian star said: ‘Destiny is the idea that the course of one’s life has been predetermined by a power beyond our understanding.
‘Back in the Middle Ages it might make sense that people would think that greatness could be bestowed upon someone by a divine force, but what is it about this unremarkable slab of rock that still holds such importance today?
‘I’m all for spirits emanating from animate and inanimate objects and giving it the power.
‘So rather than take away from that power, I love the idea that the granite on the mountain gives energy to the climber and that Loch Ness has a spirit and the Loch Ness monster exists. It [the Stone] may not have the power just lying there, but once we suggest it has power then it does have power. I think we humans give it the power.’
The legend behind the Stone of Destiny – also known as the Stone of Scone and Jacob’s Pillow – has its origins in the Bible.
But in his upcoming documentary series The UnExplained, Shatner believes the Stone’s power comes from pagan roots. He said: ‘The pagan religion existed 2,000 years ago when people believed in the spirit emanating from the object, the tree, the animal or the stone. That belief gave it power. So the more the Scots believe the Stone actually has power, gives it power.’
In 1296, Edward I of England had the Stone set into the throne at Westminster Abbey. Monarchs have been crowned on it ever since. In 1996, then Prime Minister John Major agreed to return the Stone on the proviso it would be used at future coronations at Westminster Abbey. It is now housed in Edinburgh Castle.
While describing the Stone as ‘one of Scotland’s most important artefacts’, Shatner concedes that some people think it is ‘suspect’ – but he says he is all for ‘the glory of giving it the power, the imagination and a belief that something else beyond ourselves exist’.
The UnExplained with William Shatner premieres on Sky History on Tuesday at 9pm.