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A crown is a traditional form of head adornment worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and wealth. Exquisitely made and often shimmering in gold or silver and decorated in precious gemstones, the crown also signifies the wearer as head of state, and the bigger the headwear the greater their status.
Click through this gallery and admire some of the most remarkable crowns ever created for kings and queens.
The Imperial Crown of Russia was used by the country's monarchs from 1762 until the Russian monarchy's abolition in 1917.
Also known as the Crown of Saint Stephen, the Holy Crown of Hungary was the coronation crown used by the Kingdom of Hungary for most of its existence; kings have been crowned with it since the 12th century. It's on display at the Domed Hall of the Hungarian Parliament Building.
One of the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom, the Imperial State Crown has existed in various forms since the 15th century. The current version (pictured) was made in 1937, and is worn by the monarch after a coronation.
Louis XV was King of France from September 1, 1715 until his death in 1774. His crown is on display at the Musée du Louvre in Paris.
The Imperial Crown of the Holy Roman Empire was the coronation crown of the Holy Roman Emperor, probably from the late 10th century until the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806.
Charles IV, King of Bohemia and Holy Roman Emperor, had the Crown of Saint Wenceslas made for his coronation. The crown forms part of the Bohemian Crown Jewels, made in 1346.
The 16th-century crown of King Christian IV of Denmark is currently on display in Rosenborg Castle in Copenhagen.
St Edward's Crown is the centerpiece of the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom. It has been traditionally used to crown English and British monarchs at their coronations since the 13th century. When not in use, St Edward's Crown is on public display in the Jewel House at the Tower of London.
The Iron Crown of Lombardy is a reliquary and might be one of the oldest royal insignia of Christendom. It dates back to the Middle Ages and today is kept in the Cathedral of Monza, near Milan.
The Crown of King Eric XIV of Sweden was made in Stockholm in 1561, and is still used by the King of Sweden during official ceremonies.
The papal tiara is a crown that was worn by popes of the Catholic Church from as early as the 8th century to the mid-20th. It was last used by Pope Paul VI in 1963. Pictured is an example made in the 19th century.
Queen Victoria's small diamond crown, pictured on display in the Jewel House at the Tower Of London. It's a miniature imperial and state crown made at the monarch's request in 1870 to wear over her widow's cap following the death of her husband, Prince Albert.
These Byzantine enamel plaques are probably parts of a crown representing the Emperor Constantine IX Monomachos (1042–1056), the Empress Zoë Porphyrogenita, and her sister, Theodora.
Made by London jewelers Garrards in 1893, this silver and diamond tiara was a wedding present for the future Queen Mary from the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland. Queen Elizabeth II then received it as a wedding gift in 1947.
This is the Spanish Royal Crown (pictured with scepter) used in the proclamation of the Kings of Spain. It dates back to the 18th century.
A Vajracharya priest's crown dating back to the 13th century and made from copper, gold, crystal, and turquoise.
A golden crown unearthed at Tillya Tepe, an archaeological site in the northern Afghanistan province of Jowzjan. Part of a hoard often known as the Bactrian gold, the crown, like the rest of the artifacts, has been dated back to around the 1st century BCE-1st century CE.
The Crown of Banten Sultanate. The Banten Sultanate was an Islamic trading kingdom founded in the 16th century and centered in Banten, a port city on the northwest coast of Java. Successive rulers would have worn the crown, which is crafted from gold.
The Imperial Crown of India, worn in 1911 by King George V at his Delhi Durbar, an Indian imperial-style mass assembly organized by the British at Coronation Park in Delhi to mark the succession of an Emperor or Empress of India.
The Pahlavi Crown was the coronation crown used during the Pahlavi dynasty (1925–1979). It is held in the Treasury of National Jewels in Tehran.
A gold crown from Chonma-chong ("Heavenly Horse") tomb in Kyongju, South Korea. It dates back to the Silla Kingdom, during the Three Kingdoms period, from around 5th–6th centuries.
The Monomakh's Cap is an early 14th-century relic of the Russian grand princes and czars. A symbol-crown of the Russian autocracy, it's composed of eight sectors, elaborately ornamented with a scrolled gold overlay and inlaid with rubies, emeralds, and pearls.
A 4th-century BCE gold crown in the form of oak leaves, from the royal tomb of Philip II (father of Alexander the Great) at Vergina, Greece.
Sources: (Historic Royal Palaces) (Smithsonian Magazine) (Metropolitan Museum of Art)
Spectacular royal crowns fit for heads of state
The headwear of rulers through the centuries
LIFESTYLE Monarch
A crown is a traditional form of head adornment worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and wealth. Exquisitely made and often shimmering in gold or silver and decorated in precious gemstones, the crown also signifies the wearer as head of state, and the bigger the headwear the greater their status.
Click through this gallery and admire some of the most remarkable crowns ever created for kings and queens.