Parnell has stated that the first captive ravens may have been introduced to the Tower as pets of the staff. After " The Raven", a narrative poem by American writer Edgar Allan Poe, was first published in January 1845, the Western world became fascinated with the birds. [5] Blair, Claude, ed. (1998). The Crown Jewels: The History of the Coronation Regalia …. The Stationery Office. ISBN 978-0-11-701359-9. The tinctures and charges attributed to an individual in the past provide insight into the history of symbolism (Pastoreau 1997b, 87).

Tower of London: Public to vote on baby raven's name". BBC News. 4 May 2021 . Retrieved 7 May 2021. The Brilliant, Playful, Bloodthirsty Raven". The Atlantic. 14 September 2018 . Retrieved 1 October 2018.Three silver-gilt objects (comprising a total of six parts) associated with royal christenings are displayed in the Jewel House. CharlesII's 95-centimetre (3ft 1in) tall font was created in 1661 and stood on a basin to catch any spills. [92] Surmounting the font's domed lid is a figure of Philip the Evangelist baptising the Ethiopian eunuch. [209] While Charles's marriage to Catherine of Braganza produced no heir, the font may have been used to secretly baptise some of his 13 illegitimate children. [210] In 1688, James Francis Edward Stuart, son of JamesII and Mary of Modena, was the first royal baby to be christened using this object. [211] An object referred to as " StEdward's Crown" is first recorded as having been used for the coronation of HenryIII ( r.1216–1272) and appears to be the same crown worn by Edward. Being crowned and invested with regalia owned by a previous monarch who was also a saint reinforced the king's legitimacy. [29] It was also wrongly thought to have originally been owned by Alfred the Great ( r.871–899) because an inscription on the lid of its box, translated from Latin, read: "This is the chief crown of the two, with which were crowned Kings Alfred, Edward and others". [30] The crown would be used in many subsequent coronations until its eventual destruction 400 years later. Few descriptions survive, although one 17th-century historian noted that it was "ancient Work with Flowers, adorn'd with Stones of somewhat a plain setting", [31] and an inventory described it as "gold wire-work set with slight stones and two little bells", weighing 2.25 kilograms (79.5oz). [32] It had arches and may have been decorated with filigree and cloisonné enamels. [33] Also in the Royal Collection in this period was an item called a state crown, which together with other crowns, rings, and swords, constituted the monarch's state regalia that were mainly kept at royal palaces. [34] Late medieval period [ edit ] The Stone of Scone in the Coronation Chair at Westminster Abbey, 1859 After the Restoration, wives of kings– queens consort– traditionally wore the State Crown of Mary of Modena, who first wore it at her coronation in 1685. Originally set with 561 hired diamonds and 129 pearls, it was re-set with crystals and cultured pearls for display in the Jewel House along with a matching diadem that consorts wore in procession to the Abbey. The diadem once held 177 diamonds, 1 ruby, 1 sapphire, and 1 emerald. [109] By the 19thcentury, that crown was judged to be too theatrical and in a poor state of repair, so in 1831 the Crown of Queen Adelaide was made for Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen using gemstones from her private jewellery. [110] Queen Mary's Crown with eight half-arches and the Koh-i-Noor diamond set in the front cross Religious figures [ edit ] Jesus and Mary [ edit ] Example of arms attributed to Jesus from the 15th-century Hyghalmen Roll

There is a list of additions and alterations up to Queen Victoria's 1838 coronation in Jones, pp. 63–72. For a timeline of changes between 1855 and 1967 see Holmes and Sitwell, pp. 76–78. A thorough history is contained in Blair, vol. 2. The Ravens of the Tower of London are a group [a] of at least six captive ravens (currently nine) [3] resident at the Tower of London. [4] Their presence is traditionally believed to protect the Crown and the Tower; a superstition holds that "if the Tower of London ravens are lost or fly away, the Crown will fall and Britain with it." [4] Some historians, including the Tower's official historian, believe the "Tower's raven mythology is likely to be a Victorian flight of fantasy". [5] The earliest known reference to captive ravens at the Tower is an illustration from 1883. [6] Twining, Edward Francis (1960). A History of the Crown Jewels of Europe. B. T. Batsford. ASIN BHis Royal Highness The Prince of Wales's Investiture Coronet to go on display at the Tower of London for the first time". Historic Royal Palaces . Retrieved 29 March 2020.

Brevis de Corvinae domus origine libellus", book lost but transcribed in a work by Antonius De Bonfinis [ citation needed]As enemy planes targeted London during the Second World War, the Crown Jewels were secretly moved to Windsor Castle. [83] The most valuable gemstones were taken out of their settings by James Mann, Master of the Armouries, and Sir Owen Morshead, the Royal Librarian. They were wrapped in cotton wool, placed in a tall glass preserving-jar, which was then sealed in a biscuit tin, and hidden in the castle's basement. Also placed in the jar was a note from the King, stating that he had personally directed that the gemstones be removed from their settings. As the Crown Jewels were bulky and thus difficult to transport without a vehicle, the idea was that if the Nazis invaded, the historic precious stones could easily be carried on someone's person without drawing suspicion and if necessary buried or sunk. [84] Ethiopian Manuscripts". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol.263. United Kingdom: House of Commons. 19 July 1995. col.1463W. Skaife, Christopher (2018). Ravenmaster: Life with the Ravens at the Tower of London. HarperCollins. p.214. ISBN 9781443455930. In 1990 a chaplain named Norman Hood died in his chamber on the Tower grounds. Former Assistant Ravenmaster Tom Trent has reported that the ravens appeared to be aware of the death, for they soon gathered on the Tower Green near the chapel, called out, and then became quiet, as though to pay their respects. Corvids have been widely reported to hold "funerals", in which they mourn and then cluster around a dead bird in silence. [43] :103 See also [ edit ]

Hennessy, Elizabeth (1992). A Domestic History of the Bank of England, 1930–1960. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-39140-5. a b Sax, Boria (2007). "Medievalism, Paganism, and the Tower Ravens". The Pomegranate: The International Journal of Pagan Studies. 9 (1): 272–274. doi: 10.1558/pome.v9i1.62. For the schedule of royal jewels see Nichols, John (1828), The Progresses, etc. of King James the First, vol. 2, p. 45. Humphrey, David (2014). "To Sell England's Jewels: Queen Henrietta Maria's visits to the Continent, 1642 and 1644". E-rea. Revue électronique d'études sur le monde anglophone. 11 (2). ISSN 1638-1718.Uria, Daniel (14 January 2021). "Tower of London raven presumed dead after multi-week absence". UPI. The anointing is followed by investing with coronations robes and ornaments. [q] Robes [ edit ] Queen Victoria wearing a copy of the Imperial Mantle, kept in the Museum of London, [161] 1838