THE WOOLSACK
In front of the throne is the Woolsack - the traditional 
name for the large cushion on which the Lord Chancellor 
sits. At the insistence of Edward II, who wanted to 
remind the spiritual lords of the pastoral basis of the 
country's economy, it was originally stuffed with the wool 
of English sheep - at the time the main source of the 
country's wealth. For symbolic reasons, it is now filled with 
wool from several Commonwealth countries.

In front of the Lord Chancellor are two smaller woolsacks, on
which the judges sit during the State Opening of Parliament.