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 The origins of the Stone of Destiny are shrouded in mystery. Almost everything recorded about it was written long after it
had been removed from Scone by Edward I in 1296. For example, the idea that it was Jacob's pillow, as recorded in the book of Genesis, chapter 25, seems to have been invented by
Scottish propagandists who were attacking Edward I before the pope in 1299. Another preposterous idea, that the stone was marble and would 'groan aloud with thunder' if sat on by
anyone other than the rightful heir to the throne, was invented many years later.The object itself looks like a building stone, perhaps one prepared for Scone Abbey. It was probably used
for the inauguration of King John Balliol in 1292, when traditional ceremonies were followed, as pictured on the seal of the abbey. Public enthronement, acclamation and recitation of
genealogy are all rituals dating back to remote pagan times. The formal seating of a person is a relic of a very ancient ceremony of marriage. Pagan rulers in ancient times were, in theory,
married to the divinity of their people, the goddess who brought good harvests and success in wars. As a symbol of this union between people and ruler, the latter would be ceremonially
enthroned. By the time of the coronation of John Balliol, Christian trappings had been added to this basically pagan rite, such as the anointment of the king with holy oil.
When Edward removed the Stone of Destiny from Scotland, he sent it to the royal abbey of Westminster. However, he was mistaken about the stone's importance to the people of
Scotland. In 1306, with the stone in Westminster, Robert the Bruce was inaugurated at Scone, 'on the king's stool was set, as in that time was the manner the particular stone used
for the ceremony did not matter; it was the actual seating of the royal heir that made the king. The Scots showed no real interest in recovering the stone in those years immediately after it
was taken away. In 1328 it was offered back by the English in return for political concessions, but the Scots rejected this. The myth of its sacred character grew, however, and in time it became identified as a Scottish national symbol, of near sacred importance. It was taken from Scone by Edward I in The Coronation Throne at Westminster until
December 25 1950 when a group of Scottish Nationalists removed the Stone and brought it back to Scotland where it remained for four months before it was returned. It finally came
back to Scotland on 30 November 1996 and is housed beside the other Honours of Scotland in Edinburgh Castle. |
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