Half-arch (crown)
1981261
221622282
2008-06-25T09:47:31Z
Deror avi
152386
interwiki
A '''half-arch''' is the piece of [[gold]], [[silver]] or [[platinum]], usually decorated with [[Gemstone|jewel]]s, that links the [[circlet]] (circular base) of a [[crown (headgear)|crown]] to the globe at the top of the crown.
==Number of Arches==
===British tradition of 4 half-arches===
In the image of the [[Crown of Queen Elizabeth]] (1938), there are four half-arches, reflecting the examples of [[St. Edward's Crown]], the [[State Crown of George I]], the [[Coronation Crown of George IV]] and the [[Imperial State Crown]]s of Queen [[Victoria of the United Kingdom|Victoria]] (1838) and [[George VI of the United Kingdom|George VI]] (1937).
Similarly other consort crowns of queens consort [[Mary of Modena]] and [[Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen]], the [[Crown of Mary of Modena]] and the [[Crown of Queen Adelaide]], were made up of four half-arches, following British tradition.
The only example of a crown of a [[reign]]ing British monarch possessing more than four half-arches is the [[Imperial Crown of India]], made for King [[George V of the United Kingdom|George V]] as [[Emperor of India]] to wear at the [[Delhi Durbar]] of 1911, and which had eight half-arches.
===Crown of the Prince of Wales's 1 arch===
The three crowns in existence of the [[Prince of Wales]], the [[Heir Apparent]] to the [[United Kingdom|British]] [[throne]], all have one full arch, with a globe centred on the single arch rather than being the element to which each arch separately is joined, following an instruction laid down by King [[Charles II of England|Charles II]] in 1677. Unlike the princely crowns of 1902 and 1969 however, where the single arch rises, in the [[Crown of Frederick, Prince of Wales]] (1728) the single arch dips in the centre, with the globe located in the centre of the dip.
===European tradition of 8 half-arches===
[[Image:Louis15.jpg|thumb|Crown of Louis XV <br><small>It has eight half-arches.</small>]]
In contrast many [[Europe]]an crowns traditionally contained many more, as did some other [[United Kingdom|British]] [[consort crown]]s. For example The crowns of two 20th century British [[Queen consort|Queens consort]], the [[Crown of Queen Alexandra]] (1902) and the [[Crown of Queen Mary]] (1911), reflecting their origins as European princesses from [[Denmark]] and [[Germany]] respectively, each had eight half-arches.
The [[Crown of Louis XV|Crown of Louis XV of France]] (1722), shown above, reflecting the European norm, has eight half-arches.
==Shape of arch==
Different crowns possess different shaped half arches. In some crowns, the half-arches dip down at the centre of the crown where they meet the globe. The most widely recognized example of this is [[St. Edward's Crown]], the British [[coronation crown]], while in others, such as Queen Elizabeth's consort crown, all four half-arches rise at a somewhat right angle, with no central dip.
However, in the case of the [[State Crown of George I]], while the crown as originally designed had dipping arches, they were pulled up to a right angle for the [[coronation]] of King [[George II of Great Britain|George II]] and have remained in that position.
==Detachable arches==
[[Image:Krone Kaiser Rudolf II Kaisertum Österreich.jpg|thumb|left|Crown of Rudolf II<br><small>The Crown of the Austrian Empire.</small>]]
In some crowns, such as that of the Crown of Queen Elizabeth shown, the half-arches are detachable, allowing the crown to be worn as a circlet. [[Alexandra of Denmark]], [[Mary of Teck]] and [[Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon]] (British queens consort Alexandra, Mary and Elizabeth) all at various stages wore their own crowns as circlets, particularly after the deaths of the husbands, when one of their children was on the throne and they were the [[Queen Mother]].
==Velvet inlay==
Where a crown possesses arches or half-arches, the circlet of the crown below the arches or half-arches are usually filled with velvet or other [[cloth]], or with a jewelled metal cap. Different states and different crowns may possess different coloured cloth inlays.
The most widely used colours for cloth infils are [[purple]], as in the Crown of Queen Elizabeth and in St. Edward's Crown, and dark [[red]], as in the Imperial Crown of Austria.
[[Image:Greekcrown.jpg|thumb|Crown of King Otto of Greece<br><small>A view of the Greek Crown, showing the arrangement of the half-arches.</small>]]
==No arches==
However not all crowns possess arches. The Danish Crown has no covering at all but exists in circlet form, while the [[Papal Tiara]] rises as one solid silver (or in one occasion gold) unit. Nor are arches to be found on the [[Iron Crown of Lombardy]], any of the [[Iranian Crown Jewels]]. The [[Russia]]n coronation crown possesses two central half arches, with most of the rest of the crown covered in. A same feature occurs on the [[mediaeval]] [[Crown of Rudolf II]] used by the [[Austrian Empire]] in the 19th century.
==See also==
* [[Monarchy]]
* [[Enthronement]]
==Sources==
* Anna Keay, ''The Crown Jewels: Official Guidebook'' (Historic Royal Palaces, 2002) ISBN 1-873993-20-X
{{PofC}}
[[Category:State ritual and ceremonies]]
[[Category:Crowns]]
[[he:חצי קשת]]