by Carrie Eckles

Created on: June 23, 2009   Last Updated: June 24, 2009

The Stone of Destiny, or the Stone of Scone, is an ancient stone used in the various coronation ceremonies of Great Britain for more than a thousand years.

The stone was believed to have been the same stone used by Jacob in Genesis when God came to him in a dream. The text records that God said, "I am God, Lord of Abraham your father, and Lord of Isaac. I will give to you and your descendants the land upon which you are lying..." The stone was used by the first king of Scotland, Kenneth MacAlpin. Through established genealogies - whether they are real or based upon legend - MacAlpin is a descendant of the Biblical forefathers, so this stone - and the Biblical text surrounding its origins - could've been used to cement his authority.

It's said that Robert the Bruce, a later Scottish king, gave part of the stone to Cormac McCarthy. The stone was placed at McCarthy's Blarney Castle and became known as the Blarney Stone; it's said that kissing to stone gives one the "gift of gab".

Edward I of England captured the stone from Scotland in 1296 and placed it in Westminster Abbey. A chair was constructed around it, which became known as St. Edward's Chair. All English sovereigns, with the exception of three, have been crowned upon it.

It's been said that the stone Edward captured was not the real Stone of Destiny, and that the real stone was hidden away by Scottish monks and buried. However, no evidence more than legend can suggest that the Stone of Scone we know today is not the original.

The Stone of Scone wouldn't again be used in the coronations of Scottish sovereigns until the royal Scottish house of Stuart ascended to the throne of England after the death of Queen Elizabeth I and, in 1707, the kingdom of Great Britain was created.

The Stone of Destiny was the source of intrigue in 1950 when it was stolen from Westminster Abbey by a group of four Scottish students who intended to return it to Scotland. While they were removing the stone from St. Edward's Chair, it was accidently broken in two. The two pieces were separated and carried across the Scottish border separately. Once both pieces arrived in Scotland, the students contacted a Glaswegian politician who had the stone sent to a professional stonemason for repair. After it was repaired, the stone was taken to Arbroath Abbey, so that it would be in the hands of the Church of Scotland.

Finally, the English authorities were informed of the stolen stone's location; however, it wasn't until 1996 when England decided that the stone should be kept in Scotland when it was not being used for coronations. To this day, it remains in Edinburgh Castle; still, rumors persist that the stone that resides there - and will return to England for the next coronation - is not the real Stone of Destiny.

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