Coronet box

This bespoke, tan leather box was made by R & S Garrard & Co to hold the coronet worn by the Duchess of Connaught and Strathearn to the coronation of Edward VII in 1902. It would have been used to carry the coronet to and from the coronation at Westminster Abbey, a task sometimes under taken by the peer's pageboy. The box is fitted and lined with padded ivory satin and contains a circular block in the middle to support the coronet with a sliding base for removing it. The box has a front opening, a brass carrying loop on the top and a brass lock. There is a metal plaque on top inscribed with 'HRH The Duchess of Connaught and Strathearn - Coronet' and a maker's label embossed on the under side of the lid: 'R & S Garrard & Co / Goldsmiths and Jewellers / to the Crown / 23 Haymarket London'.