Virtual crowns in your living room: Use our AR tool for full King's coronation experience

Royal fans are getting a ground-breaking opportunity to see the King and Queen's coronation crowns up close and in their living rooms.

Tap here to experience it for yourself
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A new immersive experience brought to viewers exclusively by Sky News will let people around the world bring digital twins of the crowns into their home for the first time ever, using augmented reality (AR) technology.

Available on smartphones across the globe, the experience gives people the chance to enjoy the regalia in unprecedented close-up detail.

Designed to celebrate the UK's first 21st Century coronation, the experience has been created by Atlantic Productions with thanks to the royal household.

John Ryley, head of Sky News, said: "Whether unifying or polarising, the spectacle of the King's coronation is guaranteed to capture the world's attention.

"A first for a coronation, Sky News is giving audiences the chance to hold a part of history in their hands, getting up close to the Crown Jewels in all their splendour and glory from the comfort of their living room and fully immersing audiences in the pomp and pageantry of this special event."

To mark the beginning of King Charles III's reign, this immersive experience brings a 21st Century perspective to the regalia, which have been at the heart of the ancient ceremony for hundreds of years.

Built using AR technology, the experience is designed to provide an inspiring way to learn about these historic objects.

Atlantic Productions was able to capture for the first time a 1:1 scale digital twin of King Charles's coronation crown - the St Edward's Crown - along with Queen Mary's Crown, which will be worn by the Queen.

The experience lets users put the crowns on their living room table - it works best on matt surfaces rather than shiny ones - and then interact and learn about it.

Users can look up close and move around the gold, diamonds and precious stones, and learn about their history and craftsmanship by clicking on the hotspots.

The King's crown is made of a solid gold frame set with rubies, amethysts, sapphires, garnet, topazes and tourmalines.

It was made for Charles II in 1661 as a replacement for a medieval crown that was melted down in 1649.

The original was thought to date back to the eleventh-century royal saint, Edward the Confessor - the last Anglo-Saxon king of England.

The Queen's crown is a 'recycled' version of the one made for the 1911 coronation for Queen Mary - George V's consort.

It's the first time since the 18th century that a consort is reusing a crown rather than commissioning a new one.

As a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II, diamonds known within the Royal Family as 'Granny's Chips' - which she often wore as brooches - have been added.

Anthony Geffen, CEO and Creative Director of Atlantic Productions, said: "While the ceremony itself is almost a millennium old, the royal household has granted use of the latest technologies to deliver a 21st century coronation, thereby allowing an object central to the coronation to be delivered via augmented reality into every home that has access to a smartphone or tablet.".

Read more:
Little-known facts about the King's coronation
Ultimate guide to the coronation

The experience also includes exclusive macro footage shot at the Tower of London of other significant crown jewels: The sword of offering, the sovereign's sceptre, the coronation spoon and the sovereign's orb.

It will be available exclusively via the Sky News app and website from 27 April.