How Many Times Has Queen Elizabeth II Actually Worn Her Coronation Dress?
Queen Elizabeth II‘s coronation was held more than 65 years ago, meaning that many people can’t recall a time when she wasn’t the monarch. While a good number of royal fans either don’t remember or weren’t around to have witnessed her coronation service on June 2, 1953, most have seen photos from that historic day and the dress she wore for the ceremony.
The gown was created by Sir Norman Hartnell, who submitted several different designs before the queen selected one. Her dress was so exquisite leaving royal fans to wonder if and how many times she’s worn it since. Read on to find out the answer as well as more details about the gown, and how much the coronation crown is worth.
The queen’s dress had a good luck charm hidden inside it
Queen Elizabeth’s dress was made from white duchess satin and encrusted with pearls, sequins, and crystals. Six artists did the embroidery work but Hartnell decided to include an extra detail that even the queen didn’t know about.
People noted that he sewed a four-leaf shamrock on the left side of the skirt for good luck.
How many times the queen wore the gown after her coronation
According to the royal family’s website, since that day in 1953, the queen has worn the dress half a dozen times.
The monarch wore it for three separate appearances in 1954 to open parliaments in Sri Lanka, Australia, and New Zealand. She also chose to wear it again in 1957 for the opening of Canada’s parliament. In 2016, the dress and the Robe of State, also known as Colobium Sindonis, were put on display in an exhibition to mark the sovereign’s 90th birthday.
She also wore a historic crown valued at more than $4 million
Those who tuned in to watch Queen Elizabeth’s coronation also marveled at the stunning St. Edward’s Crown placed on her head.
The crown is the oldest in the Royal Collection as it was constructed back in 1661 for the coronation of King Charles II. The headpiece weighs nearly five pounds and is 12-inches high.
In 2019, SavingSpot researchers virtually broke down each part of the crown piece by piece using the International Gem Society‘s size guide to “gauge the number of carats in the gems to determine their rough weight.” They also estimated the “weight of the velvet and ermine based on the size of the crown. Then subtracted all of this from the total weight of the crown to give the weight (and value) of the gold in the crown. They consulted the catalog of the queen‘s official supplier of fabric to get a value for the velvet and researched the average price of ermine to give us a value for this.”
The team concluded the crown to be worth a whopping $4,519,709.
