The Coronation Stone, by William F. Skene (Edmonston and Douglas),
is a monograph on a subject of some interest. Everyone knows that the stone was taken froin the Abbey of Scone by Edward I., and that it now lies under the coronation chair in Westminster Abbey. Its legendary history reaches up to a very high antiquity, for it is said to have been used by Jacob as a pillow. Its real history seems to be contained within much narrower limits. It does not actually appear before the coronation of Alexander III. in 1219, though it had no doubt possessed a certain sanctity long before that time. The stone itself may be judged from its appearance to be a native of the sandstone district of Scone ; a fact which negatives the theory, favoured by Dean Stanley, which connects it with St. Columba and the island of Iona.
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