If you find yourself the most important person in your community, how will you let other people know you are the most important? This has been a problem for rulers throughout history. One of the methods of proclaiming your position was to wear a special item that was tied symbolically to your status. What could be more impressive than a pile of precious metal and flashy stones on your head?

Since antiquity, diadems, crowns, and other valuable headgear have been used to denote monarchs, emperors, and the spiritually enlightened. Here are ten crowns from history and their meanings.

Related: 10 Royal Mysteries Solved by Science

10 Macedonian Crowns

For centuries, the kingdom of Macedon had been looked down on by the city-states of ancient Greece. The Macedonians spoke a strange dialect, still had kings, and were thought to live like barbarians. Philip II of Macedon had other ideas—he would dominate the Greeks who disdained him. Using his military genius and a well-trained army, he made himself the leader of the Greek world. If you have not heard much about Philip II, it is only because his son, Alexander the Great, had an even more spectacular career.

In 336 BC, King Philip was murdered by one of his own bodyguards. Perhaps there was something in the Macedonian reputation for barbarity. He was laid to rest in a tomb as Vergina among the other kings of Macedon. When his grave was excavated in the 1970s, Philip’s bones were discovered inside a box made of pure gold, weighing 24.2 pounds (11 kilograms). Alongside it was a diadem fashioned in the shape of a wreath of oak leaves.

In ancient Greece, wreaths made from olive, laurel, or oak were given to people to show their triumphs in athletic games, literary mastery, and military glory. For the ruler of Macedon, however, the fragile and temporary nature of plants was insufficient. The crown of Philip II is made of gold and weighs 1.5 pounds (700 grams). The leaves are attached in such a way that they would tremble when the wearer’s head moved, causing them to flash and glisten in the sun.^[1]

9 The Crown of Thorns

Not all crowns have to be made of gold to be valuable, however. The Gospel of Matthew tells us that when Jesus was being led away to his crucifixion, his guards mocked and tortured him. “They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand. Then they knelt in front of him and mocked him. “Hail, king of the Jews!” they said.” The thorned crown they crafted was not meant to ennoble Jesus but to make him look ridiculous.

Instead, the Crown of Thorns became one of the images of Jesus’ suffering for the sins of humanity and one of the most important relics for Christians. Single thorns from the crown were claimed by various religious institutions and thought to have immense spiritual power. For the kings of France, a single thorn was not enough—they wanted the whole crown.

A purported Crown of Thorns was owned by the Emperors of Constantinople. In 1238, this crown was pawned for 13,000 gold pieces to help the beleaguered city. When Baldwin II was cast off the throne of Constantinople, he ended up wandering around Europe looking for support to regain it. To get money, he sold the Crown of Thorns to King Louis of France. The crown was set into a ring of polished crystal and became one of the most important possessions of the French monarchy.^[2]

8 The Crowns of Silla

The Kingdom of Silla existed on the Korean peninsula from the 1st century BC to the 10th century AD. While much was known about their history, it was only in the 1920s that the regalia of the kings of Silla began to emerge. The name of the Gold Crown Tomb gives some idea of what was discovered inside.

Thought to date from the 6th century AD, the identity of the king buried there is not known. What we do know is that he had a magnificent crown. It stands nearly 1.7 feet (0.5 meters) tall and has three large branches of gold rising from a central headband and a pair of antlers at the rear. These are decorated with images of fish scales, hearts, birds, and dragons. Small jade drops and golden leaves hang from it.

Since the discovery of this crown, many others have been found. Most are similarly shaped and decorated. They are unlike anything else seen in ancient Korea, and some think they may show Iranian and Scythian influences.^[3]

7 Crown of Princess Blanche

Crowns were not only worn by kings. Members of the royal family would often be given a lesser crown to show that they were also members of the elite. The oldest English-owned crown belonged to Princess Blanche, daughter of Henry IV. Today, it can be found in a treasury in Munich.

The crown belonged to one of the queens of Richard II of England. When he was deposed by Henry IV, all of his jewels passed to the ownership of the new monarch. As a new king who some thought of as a usurper, Henry wanted to marry his children to important allies to show his family was legitimate. His daughter Blanche was married off to Louis, son of the King of Germany. As part of Blanche’s dowry, the crown was sent to Europe with her.

The crown itself gives some clue as to what the Medieval English monarchy must have looked like. The crown stands tall with fleur de lys made of gold and studded with sapphires, rubies, emeralds, diamonds, and pearls. Colored enamel adds to the riot of color.^[4]

6 Papal Tiaras

The pope is the spiritual leader on Earth for members of the Catholic Church. Today, this is a mostly symbolic position, but for centuries, the popes were not only religious figures but also powerful political players who ruled large areas of Italy. To look the part of a ruler who was also the successor to St. Peter, they needed headgear that created an impression.

Papal tiaras started out as fairly simple caps of white cloth in the 8th century. Over time, an ornate circlet was added to the base, which may have represented the power the popes exerted over their kingdom. One crown was not sufficient. Pope Boniface VIII, at the end of the 13th century, added another crown on top of the first to demonstrate that he stood above earthly kings and their single crowns. Just a few decades later, a third crown was added on top again, and the triple crown of the popes was complete.

Many papal tiaras were made from precious metals and covered in costly gems. One made in 1846 featured over 10,000 diamonds and a thousand emeralds, sapphires, and rubies. Not all were so expensive. When the pope was driven from Rome by the forces of Napoleon in 1798, a replacement tiara was made from papier-mâché with gems donated by local ladies. As a peace offering, Napoleon offered a new tiara in 1804—but he purposefully made it too small and too heavy to be comfortably worn.

In 1964, Pope Paul VI removed his papal tiara and placed it on the altar at the end of the Second Vatican Council as a sign that he was renouncing human power to focus on the spiritual. No pope since has worn a tiara.^[5]

5 Imperial Crown of Russia & the Monomakh’s Cap

Many European monarchs thought of Russia as a slightly backward nation in the 16th century. Over time, however, they came to look at it with envious eyes. While many European countries began to reduce the power of their monarchies and the money they had access to, the Russian crown remained an absolute authority and was famously wealthy. In 1762, Empress Catherine the Great decided that she needed a new crown—and it was going to be glorious.

Her plan was helped by the fact that the Russian throne had a monopoly on all gems mined in Russia. With all those sparkly stones to choose from, her jewelers lacked for nothing. The crown was adorned with 4,936 diamonds with a total weight of 2,858 carats. It is topped by a huge and lustrous red spinel. Large pearls decorate the wings of the crown.

The Imperial Crown is not the only one that was given to Russian Tsars during their coronations. They were first presented with the Monomakh’s Cap as a symbol of their autocracy. This consists of a golden cap with inlays of rubies and emeralds, surrounded by a ring of fur. This would keep the tsar warm in the cold Russian winter.^[6]

4 Imperial State Crown

When Charles III was crowned at his coronation, St. Edward’s Crown was placed on his head. This is the only moment when a British monarch gets to wear that crown. St. Edward’s Crown is soon swapped for the more famous Imperial State Crown, which the king will be seen wearing at state events.

The Imperial State Crown of Britain is made to show off the might of the empire, as it once was. The crown is set with old gems from the royal collection and new ones to represent power. Among the old stones is a sapphire said to have belonged to Edward the Confessor in the 11th century. Another sapphire was a treasure of the Stuart monarchs. A large red spinel is known as the Black Prince’s Ruby and has a hole in it where a feather could be placed as decoration.

The crown was altered in 1909 to allow the 317-carat Cullinan II to be added. The Cullinan diamond was the largest gem-quality diamond ever discovered and was cut into nine smaller stones. Queen Elizabeth II referred to these smaller gems as “granny’s chips” because they belonged to her grandmother, Queen Mary.^[7]

3 Holy Crown of Hungary

The Holy Crown of Hungary, also known as the Crown of St. Stephen, was the symbol of the Hungarian state for centuries. Before King Stephen died in 1038, he is said to have held the crown aloft and dedicated it to the Virgin Mary. This made the crown holy as well as representing kingly power. In later years, the crown came to be considered a person in its own right, and the kings of Hungary merely ruled in the name of the crown.

The crown itself is made of gold and decorated with enamel images of Christ, angels, saints, and kings. The crown is surmounted by a cross which seems to grow out of the belly of an image of Jesus. The cross sits at an odd angle, and this is thought to have come about when the chest it was stored in was closed too quickly and damaged the crown in the 17th century; it was never repaired.

At the end of the Second World War, the crown was handed to American forces in Austria in a black leather satchel to protect it from the Soviets. The crown was taken to America and held in Fort Knox for safety. In 1978, President Carter decided to return the crown to Hungary to encourage the people there to keep working toward freedom.^[8]

2 Iron Crown of Lombardy

According to medieval theology, kings held their earthly power by the will of God. Their crowns were, therefore, symbols of their divine right to rule. Some crowns took this idea of holiness further by including relics within them.

The Iron Crown of Lombardy is one of the oldest pieces of royal regalia to survive in Europe, and it may have a link directly to Jesus. According to legend, it was made for Emperor Constantine by his mother, St. Helena. Helena was famous for going to the Holy Land and coming back with the True Cross on which Jesus died. She is said to have had one of the nails of the cross fashioned into a helmet for her son to protect him. Some said that the Iron Crown was this helmet, and it, too, contained the holy nail.

Indeed, inside the Iron Crown, there is a band of dark metal that supports the six panels of gold that make up the crown. Alas, for all those who wore the crown, it seems unlikely that the story of the crown is true. It was probably made in the 8th century. The band on the inside, which gave the crown its name, is not iron—scientific analysis showed that it is actually silver.^[9]

1 Crown of the Holy Roman Empire

The Western Roman Empire fell in the 5th century, according to most histories, but it had a later revival. On Christmas Day in the year 800, Pope Leo III crowned King Charlemagne and gave him the title Emperor of the Romans. Those who succeeded Charlemagne continued to claim this title, and over time, it was taken as the title of the ruler of the Holy Roman Empire. This confederation of states, mostly in modern Germany, lasted until 1806.

Those who took on the title of Emperor were crowned with the Imperial Crown of the Holy Roman Empire. This crown was made for Otto I in 962, though with later additions. It is so old that it has an octagonal shape like the crowns of the Byzantine Empire, rather than the more familiar round shape of modern crowns. It is made from eight plates of gold. Four of the plates have religious images on them. The four larger plates are covered in gems. Because the crown was made before it was known how to facet gems, the stones were polished into dome shapes.

According to legend, the crown was once more impressive than it is today. A gem known as the Waise, or Orphan, once sat on its front. A writer from 1250 said, “The Orphan is a jewel in the crown of the Roman emperor. Because the like of it has never been seen elsewhere, it is called the ‘Orphan.’ It has the colour of wine, of delicate red wine, and it is as if the dazzling white of snow penetrates the bright wine red, and yet it remains dormant in this redness. The gem shines powerfully, and it is said that it once even shone at night, but not in our time, but it is said to preserve the honour of the empire.” No one knows why the Orphan might have been removed from the crown or what happened to it.^[10]

Gold is a magical element. It is one of the few metals that can be found in nature without the need to purify it. This means humans have been spotting this glittering material for millennia just by looking down. It is so soft and malleable that it can be beaten into thin sheets, and gold never tarnishes. Something made of gold will still look as stunning 1,000 years after it was originally made. No wonder many ancient cultures had myths about gold belonging to the divine.

Because gold is so good at withstanding the ravages of time, many of the most stunning ancient artifacts are made from it. Here are ten golden objects that show the glories of the ancient world.

Related: Top 10 Ridiculously Expensive Golden Objects

10 Priam’s Treasure

Heinrich Schliemann is one of the most extraordinary figures in archaeology. He is also one of the most controversial. Most people in the 19th century thought that The Iliad, which described the war between the Greeks and the Trojans, was all pure myth. Schliemann thought it was based on actual events—and set out to find the proof.

Using his self-made fortune, Schliemann funded a dig in modern Turkey at a site called Hissarlik. Almost immediately, he found the ruins of a great city. Schliemann had found ancient Troy. Well, at least he was convinced. What he actually found were the remains of nine cities, each built atop the ruins of the preceding city. One of them had to be the Troy mentioned in the famed work by Homer, so Schliemann dug straight down, hunting for treasure to prove his theory correct and destroying much valuable archaeology on the way.

But Schliemann did strike gold. He found a cache of golden and silver objects, which he named the Treasure of Priam, after the king of Troy in TThe Iliad. Among the most spectacular discoveries were diadems made of hundreds of pieces of hammered gold. These were smuggled out of Turkey (some say in Mrs. Schliemann’s underwear) and taken to Germany. The treasure did not get to rest in peace for long. After the Second World War, it was looted by the Soviets and taken to Russia, where it remains to this day.^[1]

9 Orphic Gold Tablets

Understanding ancient religious practices around burial can be incredibly difficult. Often all archaeologists have to work with are a few scraps of bone and maybe some grave goods left with the body. In the Classical world, however, sometimes writing was left with the corpse that helps make things explicit.

Sometimes these little texts, called Totenpass (German for “Passport for the Dead”), are written on sheets of gold. The writings they contain are meant to help guide the dead person into the afterlife of their choice. These are found in several religions and cults of the ancient world but are all designed to ensure an eternal and happy life.

One of these strange texts has been described as the world’s oldest book. Made from six sheets of decorated gold that were joined together, it was discovered in Bulgaria and dates from around 500 BC. The writing in the book is in Etruscan, a culture that lived in Italy before the rise of the Romans.^[2]

8 Muisca Raft

Many European explorers and conquerors were drawn to South America because they dreamed of fabulous golden treasures waiting to be discovered. Most were disappointed. But there were glorious artworks to be found, and gold-working by Pre-Columbian civilizations was among the most sophisticated in the world. Unfortunately, much was lost to the conquistadors and later grave robbers.

However, in the Gold Museum in Bogota, one small object tells an interesting tale. The Muisca Raft, also known as the El Dorado raft, shows several figures riding on a raft. The intricately sculpted piece is thought to model the rites that gave rise to the legend of El Dorado—the Golden One.

The chief of the Muisca people was initiated into his position by being coated in gold dust. He was then rowed into the middle of a lake, where he washed the gold from his body. Further offerings were made of gold and emeralds. The model of this ceremony was found by farmers in 1969.^[3]

7 The Broighter Hoard

Boats had a special meaning in the ancient world. With boats, humans were able to conquer the rough and terrifying elements of the ocean. It is no wonder then that several boats have been immortalized in gold.

The Broighter Hoard dates from the 1st century AD and was found in Northern Ireland in 1896 when the objects were plowed up in a field. After they were given a quick wash in the sink at the farmhouse, where it is possible some smaller pieces were lost down the drain, they were sold to the British Museum. It soon became clear the golden objects that were recovered were truly remarkable. Among the finds were a golden torc, a bowl, and a necklace made from three strands of gold. The most interesting piece was a boat made of gold, complete with oars and seats for rowers.

The presence of the boat among the hoard has led to suggestions that it was an offering to Manannán mac Lir—a sea god and lord of the underworld in Irish mythology.^[4]

6 The Staffordshire Hoard

Some hoards were deposited as ritual offerings to the gods, but some served a more practical purpose. In an emergency, it was often handy to hide your treasures in the ground for safety. You could then come back later and retrieve them. Or not, as the case may be. Many hoards are found when the ancient owners never returned for them. And this can allow us to piece together their histories.

The Staffordshire Hoard from England is the largest collection of Anglo-Saxon gold and silver ever discovered. In total, it contains over 11 pounds (5 kilograms) of gold and thousands of objects. Many are richly decorated with inlaid garnets. Dating from the 7th or 8th century, all the objects, except for three religious items, are all related to the military. The one golden sword fitting found at Sutton Hoo was remarkable, but the Staffordshire Hoard contains 50 of them. So, where did all this treasure come from?

Given the quality of the objects and their military nature that were uncovered, it looks like they were looted from defeated enemies following a battle.^[5]

5 Saka Gold

Nomadic tribes are often thought of as living hard and poor lives. However, the Saka people of the 1st millenium BC were horse lords of the Eurasian steppes who prized their horses above all else. But they also left some of the richest material behind them, especially if one considers the amount of gold found in their tombs.

Over the tombs of their dead rulers, the Saka constructed large mounds that dominated their landscape. Archaeologists sometimes come across vast hoards of golden objects when they open these tombs. When one tomb, known as Arzhan 2, was excavated, they found two human skeletons in the center, 33 other people probably executed to follow the leader into the afterlife, and 9,300 golden objects weighing nearly 44 pounds (20 kilograms).

Other Saka tombs are almost as rich in their grave offerings. It seems people in the ancient world were not immune to the idea of a little grave robbing. When Arzhan 2 was dug up, archaeologists were able to see where an ancient attempt had been made to find the gold—but the early robbers gave up just shy of their prize.^[6]

4 Ram in a Thicket

The civilizations of Mesopotamia were among the first to develop cities and writing anywhere on Earth. The city of Eridu was founded around 5400 BC. Over the millennia which followed, the cities between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers developed into powerful states through trade and war. They also became famously wealthy and showed their wealth through a love of gold.

In the British Museum, there is a startling gold, shell, and lapis lazuli object that peers out at visitors. Known as the Ram in a Thicket, it is actually a goat standing against a flowering shrub. It was discovered in the ancient city of Ur and is thought to date from around 2500 BC.

The Ram was found inside the royal cemetery of Ur, inside what is colorfully known as the Great Death Pit, and no one can say for certain what it represents. A pair of these objects were found in the tomb and may have acted as supports for a bowl.^[7]

3 Varna Man

The Varna culture of Bulgaria flourished around 4500 BC and is best known from a single site. The Varna Necropolis was discovered by accident in 1972 and was immediately recognized as a very important ancient monument. The 300 graves of the Varna were the oldest known, where large amounts of gold were deposited with the dead.

Just one of the graves, Grave 43, contains more gold objects than are known from the rest of the world combined for this date. Known as Varna Man, this person was buried with gold disks sewn to his clothes, thick golden pendants, glittering bracelets, axes with handles of gold, and even a golden sheath to put over his penis.

Opinion differs as to who Varna Man may have been. The richness of his goods makes some think he was a ruler. Others think he may have been a goldsmith himself, which may also have been a highly valued position.^[8]

2 Gold Curse Tablets

Curse tablets are some of the strangest texts from the ancient world. Romans and Greeks were known to engrave their prayers and curses onto pieces of metal, curl them up, and deposit them at special religious sites so that the gods may read them and bring them to fruition. Most of these are written on lead, but some people tried to tempt the gods to do their work by using gold.

In Serbia, examples of curses written on gold and silver were discovered in 2016. Most curse tablets are written in Latin or Greek and say things like “May he who carried off Vilbia from me become as liquid as water,” or “May your penis hurt when you make love.” But these Serbian golden curses are more complex magical charms that are harder to read. The language appears to be Aramaic, but the words are written in the Greek alphabet.^[9]

1 Gold Wizard Hats

Hats have always been a way to make a fashion statement or mark someone as important. What bolder statement could one make than to make a hat out of gold? Maybe it would be more spectacular if you made it 2 feet (70 centimeters) tall.

Several large conical headpieces made of gold have been found in Europe that date from around 1400 to 800 BC. Their extraordinary size is matched by their intricate decoration, which also hints at their role in rites and religion. Some of the gold hats were carefully buried in antiquity, so they must have had some importance to the people who owned them.

The Berlin Gold Hat is the largest known and acts as a calendar. The golden rays of the sun are mimicked at the top, but in bands running around its length are images of the moon. For those who knew how to interpret these symbols, the hat functions as a 19-year lunar calendar and predicts lunar eclipses.^[10]