At the coronation of a sovereign the sergeants-at-arms, whose number seems to have varied in the course of centuries, carry their maces and form part of the procession. Originally the mace-bearers were a corps of twenty-four knights, or gentlemen of high degree, who formed a sort of bodyguard to the King, and thus they were in the reign of Richard Cœur de Lion. As late as the reign of Charles II the sergeants-at-arms bearing their maces are shown mounted on horses. At the present day a sergeant-at-arms walks and carries his mace, no mean weight, as those who have seen them stagger after a long day may well imagine. Thirty-four pounds do they each weigh. We have now accounted for all the secular plate in the Tower pertaining to royalty, and proceed to describe the ecclesiastical plate used at the coronations of our monarchs, or on certain occasions during their reigns, either at Westminster, or at St. Peter ad Vincula, a Royal chapel within the Tower. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ CHAPTER V ECCLESIASTICAL PLATE The Ampulla or Golden Eagle—Its great age—Repaired for Coronation of Charles II—The lapis lazuli eagle lost or sold—The Ampulla escapes the Commonwealth—Hidden in Westminster Abbey—The Ampulla at the Coronation—Filled with holy oil—Oil costing £200—Height of eagle—A prototype of the lecternes in churches—The anointing spoon—Of Byzantine origin—The spoon described—Its use at a coronation—Oil on the King’s head—The Maundy Dish—Its severe simplicity—Inaugurated by Charles II—Maundy money for the aged poor—The ceremony of presentation at Westminster—The baptismal font—For Princes and Princesses of the Blood Royal—The alms dish—Queen Victoria orders a new font—The bacchanalian flagons—The alms dish and flagon of William and Mary—Used in the chapel within the Tower.