Here’s a closer look at each of the items above (and below) the casket today: On Monday morning, the coffin was placed in a state carriage, pulled by 142 Royal Navy personnel to the nearby abbey, after crowds of mourners lined the route. The carriage was also used for the funerals of Edward VII, George V, George VI and former Prime Minister Winston Churchill. As for her father, King George VI, her grandfather, King George V, her great-grandfather, King Edward VII, and her great-grandmother, Queen Victoria, the Queen’s coffin was carried in procession to Westminster Abbey in state carriage. pic.twitter.com/2Vl58ITLGp —@RoyalFamily The flag draped over the coffin is the Royal Standard, which represents both the sovereign and the United Kingdom. It was thrown out of her palaces when the Queen was at home and in her car on official trips. If the Union Jack was flying over Buckingham Palace, the Queen wasn’t there. The flag has four quarters: two with lions representing England, a lion for Scotland and a harp for Ireland. (Wales is not represented.) The crown above the plush cushion is the Royal Imperial Crown, which is encrusted with 2,868 diamonds, 269 pearls, 17 sapphires, 11 emeralds and four rubies. It was first worn by the Queen when she left Westminster Abbey on the day of her coronation in 1953. It was originally made for the coronation of her father, King George VI, in 1937. The scepter and orb on the casket are, like the crown, among the most famous parts of the crown jewels, which include more than 100 objects and 23,000 precious stones. Both were present at the Queen’s coronation. The Sovereign’s Scepter has been used at every coronation since the coronation of Charles II in 1661. It is intended to represent the power of the Crown and includes the Cullinan I Diamond, the largest colorless, cut diamond in the world. The Orb of the Sovereign, meanwhile, is meant to suggest that the monarchy’s power comes from God. Before the final hymn at the ceremony, the imperial crown, orb and scepter were removed from the coffin and placed on the altar in St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle. The floral wreath, in shades of gold, pink and deep burgundy with touches of white, included flowers and foliage cut from the gardens of Buckingham Palace and Clarence House at the request of King Charles. They include commemorative rosemary and myrtle cut from a plant grown from a sprig of myrtle in the Queen’s 1947 wedding bouquet. The wreath also contained a handwritten note that read, “In loving and devoted memory,” and was signed Charles R — for Rex, or king.
