Edinburgh Castle · The Crown Room · Royal Palace
The Honours of Scotland — the Crown, the Sceptre and the Sword of State — are the oldest crown jewels in Britain, and the headline reason most people step inside Edinburgh Castle. Here's their extraordinary survival story, what you'll see in the Crown Room, and how to skip the queue to reach them.
Tucked inside the Royal Palace at the top of Edinburgh Castle, behind a series of rooms telling the story of how they were made and hidden, sit three objects that outlived sieges, invasions, a civil war and 111 years locked in a forgotten chest. The Honours of Scotland are the oldest surviving crown jewels in Britain — older than the English regalia, which were melted down during the Civil War and remade for Charles II. The Scottish Honours simply refused to disappear.
For most visitors, the Crown Room is the emotional climax of an Edinburgh Castle visit: a hushed, dimly lit vault where the Crown, Sceptre and Sword of State sit together, exactly as they were used to crown Scotland's monarchs. This guide tells you what each piece is, the adventure-novel history behind them, and the practical details — including the one thing people most often get wrong about what's actually on display.
Edinburgh Castle: Guided Walking Tour with Entry Ticket. The Honours are inside the castle, and the gate queue can run 30–45 minutes in summer before you even reach them. This is the most-booked castle tour on GetYourGuide — skip-the-line entry past the gate line, then a local guide takes you up through the fortress toward the Royal Palace, where the Crown Room sits.
From $52 per person · reserve now, pay later · instant confirmation · mobile ticket. Prefer a deeper dive? The 120-minute in-depth tour spends longer on the Crown Jewels' history.
The "Honours" are three pieces, each older and stranger than the last. Together they first crowned a monarch — Mary, Queen of Scots — in 1543, and the Crown still appears at the opening of every session of the Scottish Parliament today.
The centerpiece
The papal gift
The Renaissance masterpiece
The story that makes the Crown Room worth the queue
During the 1650s the Honours were spirited out of the castle to escape Oliver Cromwell's army, concealed at Dunnottar Castle and then buried under a church floor for safekeeping. After the 1707 Act of Union with England, they were locked in a chest in the castle and effectively forgotten — for 111 years.
In 1818 the novelist Sir Walter Scott secured permission to break open the sealed Crown Room. He found the Honours exactly where they'd been left, untouched. They've been on public display almost ever since. Standing in front of them, that's the story you're looking at.
This is the one thing visitors most often get wrong about the Crown Room.
Reach the Honours without the wait
The Crown Jewels are the reason most people come. Skip-the-line entry takes you straight up toward the Royal Palace and the Crown Room, with the Great Hall and St Margaret's Chapel on the way — and combo options add the Royal Mile or Holyrood Palace.
Check availabilityEvery guided castle tour here includes skip-the-line entry and the Honours of Scotland in the Crown Room. Pick the value walk, the storytelling history tour, or the deepest in-depth dive.
Skip-the-line entry included · The fastest route to the Crown Jewels
Skip-the-line entry included · Storytelling guides, 10,900+ reviews
Fast-track entry · The most time on the Crown Jewels' history
The questions travelers most often ask about the Honours of Scotland at Edinburgh Castle.
They're known as the Honours of Scotland: the Crown of Scotland, the Sceptre and the Sword of State. Dating from the 15th and 16th centuries, they're the oldest crown jewels in Britain and are displayed together in the Crown Room at Edinburgh Castle.
In the Crown Room, inside the Royal Palace at the top of Edinburgh Castle. They've been on public display there since 1819, alongside the Stewart and Lorne Jewels.
Yes. Entry to the Crown Room and the Honours of Scotland is included with standard Edinburgh Castle admission — there's no separate charge. A skip-the-line castle ticket simply gets you to them faster.
The Crown, Sceptre and Sword date from the late 1400s and 1500s, making them the oldest surviving crown jewels in Britain — older than England's, which were destroyed during the Civil War and remade for Charles II.
The Stone of Destiny is a separate coronation object that was once displayed alongside the Honours. It's no longer at Edinburgh Castle — it moved to a permanent display at Perth Museum in 2024. The three Honours remain in the castle's Crown Room.
After being locked away following the 1707 Act of Union and forgotten for 111 years, the Honours were rediscovered in 1818 when the novelist Sir Walter Scott obtained permission to open the sealed Crown Room and found them intact.
Early morning right after the castle opens, or later in the afternoon, to avoid the midday queue that builds along the corridors leading to the Crown Room in peak season. See our things to do in Edinburgh guide for planning the rest of your day.
Photography is usually restricted inside the Crown Room to protect the display. Check the signage when you visit, as the rules can change.
The Crown Jewels sit at the top of Edinburgh Castle, but they're one stop on a much bigger day. Walk the Royal Mile down to the Palace of Holyroodhouse, climb Arthur's Seat for the view, or pair the castle with the National Museum of Scotland. These hand-picked Edinburgh tours and tickets — from skip-the-line castle entry to Old Town history walks and Highlands day trips — are the easiest way to build the rest of your visit around a morning with the Honours of Scotland.
The Honours of Scotland are the headline of any Edinburgh Castle visit — Britain's oldest crown jewels, with a survival story to match. Skip the gate queue and head straight up to the Crown Room. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
