Danish Crown Regalia: Encyclopedia - Danish Crown Regalia

Danish Crown Regalia

Danish Crown Regalia. The symbols of the monarchy, consist of the crown, the sceptre (symbolising supreme authority), the orb (a globus cruciger, symbolising the earthly realm surmounted by a cross), the sword of state and the ampulla. The oldest of these is Christian III's sword of state from 1551. The Danish Royal Regalia are kept at Rosenborg Castle. They include King Christian IV's diamond, pearl and gold-embroidered saddles; objects carved from ivory and rock-crystal; lapidary pieces of precious stones, and brooches in the form of fantastic animals. The regalia were worn at the coronation of the elective monarchs, when the clergy and nobility placed the crown on the king's head. After the introduction of absolutism in 1660 the crowning of the king was replaced by anointment, for which the king arrived in the church wearing the crown and was consecrated to his calling by being anointed with oil. For the anointing of Christian V, a new crown was made along with a throne of narwhal teeth (the unicorn's horn) and three silver lions. With the 1849 Constitution anointing was discontinued and since then the crown jewels have only been used on the occasion of the monarch's castrum doloris when the crown is placed on the coffin and the other regalia laid at its foot, guarded by the three lions.

Rosenborg also houses four sets of Crown Jewels still worn by HM the Queen of Denmark, and the Royal Regalia which gave a monarch their authority to rule. It includes King Christian IV's coronation crown, which is a fine example of Renaissance gildswork. The Royal Collection has other important items and jewels, as well as precious prayer-books, and items belonging to the Order of the Elephant and the Order of the Dannebrog.

Crown of Bavaria | Crown of Christian IV (Denmark) | Crown of Christian V (Denmark) | Crown of Charlemagne (France) | Royal Crown of Serbia | Crown of Empress Eugenie (France) | Crown of Frederick I (Prussia) | Crown of Louis XV (France) | Crown of Napoleon (France) | Crown of Wilhelm II (Prussia) | Crown of St. Stephen (Hungary) | Crown of Wenceslas (Czech lands) | Crown of the Polish Kingdom (Poland) | Kiani Crown (Persia) | Imperial Crown of Austria | Imperial Crown of Brazil | Imperial Crown of the Holy Roman Empire | Imperial Crown of Russia | Iron Crown of Lombardy | Monomakh's Cap (Muscovy) | Pahlavi Crown (Iran) | Papal Tiara

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Austrian Crown Jewels | British Crown Jewels | Bavarian Crown Jewels | Bohemian Crown Jewels | Danish Crown Regalia | Dutch Royal Regalia | French Crown Jewels | German Crown Jewels | Greek Crown Jewels | Hungarian Crown Jewels | Imperial Regalia of the Holy Roman Empire | Iranian Crown Jewels | Honours of Scotland | Honours of Wales | Irish Crown Jewels | Imperial Regalia of Japan | Nigerian Royal Regalia | Norwegian Royal Regalia | Polish Crown Jewels | Portuguese Crown Jewels | Prussian Crown Jewels | Russian Crown Jewels | Serbian Crown Jewels | Spanish Crown Jewels | Swedish Royal Regalia |

Categories: Visitor attractions in Copenhagen | Crown jewels | Crowns | Danish monarchy | State ritual and ceremonial

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Danish Crown Regalia", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki