Buckingham Palace said on Tuesday, Camilla, Britain’s Queen Consort has chosen a crown without the controversial colonial-era Kohinoor diamond for her coronation ceremony with her husband King Charles III.

The wife of Britain’s King Charles will wear the crown of Queen Mary for her coronation in May. The current version of Queen Mary’s crown has a front cross set with a detachable rock crystal replica of the Kohinoor diamond, it isn’t known yet if that would be retained after the changes are made for the coronation.

Statement from the palace

“Some minor changes and additions will be undertaken by the Crown Jeweller, in keeping with the longstanding tradition that the insertion of jewels is unique to the occasion, and reflects the Consort’s individual style. These changes will in particular pay tribute to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, as the crown will be reset with the Cullinan III, IV, and V diamonds”, the palace said.

Buckingham Palace further said, “The choice of Queen Mary’s Crown by Her Majesty is the first time in recent history that an existing crown will be used for the Coronation of a Consort instead of a new commission being made, in the interests of sustainability and efficiency”.

“The diamonds have been set into Queen Mary’s Crown on previous occasions as well when Cullinan III and IV were set temporarily in the crown for the 1911 Coronation, and the Cullinan V was inserted when the crown was worn as a regal circlet at King George VI’s coronation in 1937”, the palace added.

The Koh-i-Noor is one of the largest cut diamonds in the world. Kohinoor means mountain of light in Persian. It was taken from India by the East India Company during the colonial era and presented to Queen Victoria. It is set in a crown last worn by Charles’s grandmother during her coronation.

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