The 800-year-old "Stone of Destiny" will be used during the coronation of Charles III in Britain (photo)

On May 6, 2023, Charles III will be crowned King of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries in the United Kingdom. During the coronation, the "Stone of Destiny" will be used, which contains hidden symbols and anomalies.

The Stone of Destiny is a large rectangular stone. It was used during the coronation of the kings of Scotland in the 13th century. Currently, it is used during the coronation of monarchs of the United Kingdom. As part of the modern ceremony, the stone is placed in the coronation chair on which the monarch sits.

This stone was transported from Scotland to England in 1296 and was not returned to its original location until the 20th century. Its history before the 13th century is unknown.

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According to LiveScience, despite the 800-year history of this stone, scientists at Historic Environment Scotland have only recently noticed never-before-documented symbols and other anomalies on the stone.

In particular, they found a copper alloy stain and remnants of gypsum plaster on the stone. They may indicate that the Stone of Destiny has unknown aspects of its history that are not recorded in documents.

Scientists from Historic Environment Scotland, the government agency that cares for the stone, performed laser scans of the artifact and conducted scientific tests, revealing new information about it. Thus, during the scanning, marks similar to Roman numerals were found on the stone. They include three X-shaped marks followed by a V-like marking.

"The Roman numerals have not been recorded before. We don't know why they were carved or what they mean, but we hope this will be an area for further research," said Ewan Hislop, Head of Research and Climate Change at Historic Environment Scotland.

Scientists admit that the carvings may not even be Roman numerals, but other symbols.

In particular, Ewan Campbell, a senior lecturer at the Department of Archaeology at the University of Glasgow in the UK, said: "I think these are questionable numbers - more like crude crosses." He suspects they were carved into the stone only sometime after it was transported from Scotland to England in 1296.

The research team also identified the copper alloy stain on the stone using X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis, a relatively non-destructive technique that works by measuring the chemical composition of materials such as rocks, minerals, and sediments. The find indicates that a copper or brass object was placed on the stone for a period of time at some point in its history.

"By far the more important result is the presence of a copper stain on the surface," Campbell commented. In his opinion, this indicates that some object, perhaps a relic, such as a saint's bell, had been on the stone for a long time.

The analysis also revealed the presence of gypsum plaster on the Stone of Destiny. This indicates that at some point the artifact could have been made of plaster. The existence of a cast is unexpected, as no records mention a cast made of stone.

In a comment to Live Science, Sally Foster, a professor of heritage and conservation at the University of Stirling, said he had not come across any stories or evidence that the stone had been reproduced in this way.

Although it is unclear how the plaster got on the stone, the latest scans and tests will make it easier for scientists to study the stone. "The Stone of Destiny is rarely moved, and it is not easy for scientists and the public to look at it in its entirety, close-up or for any extended period of time," Foster added.

Earlier, the royal family announced the dish chosen by Charles III for his coronation.

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