The Stone of Destiny is back in Scotland after it was taken to London for the King's coronation.
Historic Environment Scotland told The Herald that the 700-year-old relic has now returned to the Crown Room in Edinburgh Castle.
Kathy Richmond, Head of Collections & Applied Conservation at Historic Environment Scotland said: “We are delighted to have fulfilled our responsibilities on behalf of the Commissioners for the Safeguarding of the Regalia and that the Stone of Destiny is now back on display for visitors to Edinburgh Castle to enjoy.
"Historic Environment Scotland is proud of the hard work that went into achieving this, not just by our teams, but by the partners who supported us and collaborated to ensure the Stone was safely included and returned to the Castle.”
READ MORE: Stone of Destiny leaves Edinburgh Castle and heads to London
Following the crowning ceremony, the Stone was temporarily displayed in the Abbey for visitors coming to look at the Coronation Theatre. However, that came to an end on Saturday.
The Stone of Destiny has been used for centuries in the coronations of monarchs and the inauguration of Scottish kings.
However, there were splits among supporters of Scottish independence over whether the stone should have been allowed to leave Scotland for the first time in 25 years.
Former first minister Alex Salmond said he would have ordered a ring of policemen to surround the historic sandstone block, to prevent it from being used in the coronation.
It is not known exactly when the totemic monument was returned, with the transportation north of the border shrouded in secrecy.
During the Wars of Independence, the Stone of Destiny was looted from Scone, Perthshire, and taken south in 1296 by Edward I where it was placed beneath the coronation throne in Westminster Abbey.
It stayed there for most of the next 650 years, only being moved for safekeeping during the war, and again on Christmas day 1950, when Glasgow students Ian Hamilton, Kay Matheson, Gavin Vernon, and Alan Stuart repatriated the stone to Scotland.
The audacious plot sparked one of the largest manhunts in British history, with checkpoints being set up at the border for the first time in centuries.
However, the police soon caught up with the gang, after detectives went in Glasgow Mitchell Library and asked if anyone had shown a special interest in the Stone of Destiny.
The stone finally reappeared on April 11, 1951, when it was discovered on the altar of Arbroath Abbey, draped in a Saltire.
However, rumours have always persisted that the stone handed back was a copy.
One persistent tale is that it was actually hidden in the Arlington pub in Glasgow’s west end where Mr Hamilton and his friends were regulars.
The stone was formally returned to Scotland by John Major's government on St Andrew's Day 1996.
HES said the Stone that came back from London will be kept in Edinburgh until it is relocated to Perth as part of the new City Hall Museum, which is due to open in 2024.
ALBA Party’s National Organisation Convener Denise Findlay welcomed the return of the artefact: "The Stone of Destiny is an ancient symbol of our nation’s sovereignty. To some it might just be a lump of rock, but it is our lump of rock."
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