He is the first Japanese emperor to stand down in more than 200 ... took possession of the sacred imperial regalia - a sword and a gem - that have been passed down through the generations.

Japan's Emperor Akihito has declared his abdication ... the state and privy seals into the hall, along with a sacred sword and a jewel which are considered symbols of the imperial family.

To either side of the emperor’s chair are desks where a sacred sword and jewel ... without the presence of the “sacred treasures”. Japanese mythology has it that the sun goddess Amaterasu ...

Japanese Emperor Naruhito formally proclaimed his ascendancy ... dressed in burnt-orange robes and a black headdress, with an ancient sword and a boxed jewel, two of the so-called Three Sacred ...

The Japanese title of the Emperor is Tenno, an untranslatable word ... placed upon stands adjoining the Throne, the sacred Sword and Jewel, emblems and relics of the Sun Goddess, which, together ...

Japan’s Emperor Akihito has marked the end of his ... The royal will inherit “regalia that includes a sacred sword and jewels in a ceremony that will serve as the proof of ascension ...