ALMOST 21 years after it returned to Scotland, the Stone of Destiny may be set for another move within a few years.

Currently residing in Edinburgh Castle, the Stone – accepted by most people as the original but seen by others as a fake – is being touted as ideal for the revamped Perth City Hall or Perth Museum and Art Gallery. The proposed location is just a few miles south of Scone, where the Stone lay for centuries.

The National has learned that while no-one is saying anything officially, sources in Perth are quietly confident that the Stone could be returned to the county from which it was stolen by King Edward I of England in 1296.

The 336lb (152kg) Stone is also known as the Stone of Scone, where it was located for at least 400 years. It was used in the crowning of the monarchs of Scotland before Edward Longshanks removed it to Westminster Abbey to become part of the Coronation Chair. English and United Kingdom monarchs since then have been crowned upon it.

Those leading the Perth campaign have been confident enough to appoint the leading design company Metaphor – known for their work on the National Galleries and National Museum in Edinburgh – to show how the Stone could be displayed in the City Hall in particular, after its refurbishment as a cultural centre at a cost of more than £20 million.

Charles Kinnoull, chair of Culture Perth and Kinross, recently told of his hopes. “I personally feel pretty optimistic,” he said. “Metaphor have done so many beautiful things. I think they will do something really, really good for the Stone.”

Sources in Perth are also pinning their hopes on a change of personnel in the body that advises the Queen on matters affecting the Stone. The decision will ultimately be made by the Queen, advised by the Commissioners for the Safekeeping of the Regalia, a body that came into existence in 1818 when Sir Walter Scott discovered the “lost” Honours of Scotland – the Scottish Crown Jewels – in Edinburgh Castle.

Under a Royal Warrant in 1996, responsibility for deciding the Stone’s location and any move was given to the commissioners, who will also be responsible for its return to Westminster to become the Coronation Stone when the next monarch takes the throne.

When it was first suggested in 2006 that the Stone should go back to Scone, the commissioners were the then First Minister Jack McConnell, in his role as Keeper of the Great Seal of State; the Lord Advocate Elish Angiolini; the Lord Justice Clerk, Lord Gill; and the Earl of March and Wemyss, who held Scotland’s oldest office of state, that of Lord Clerk Register.

It was understood at the time that the security of the Stone within Edinburgh Castle was a major factor in the decision to reject a move.

The current commissioners are First Minister Nicola Sturgeon; the Lord Advocate, James Wolffe QC; the Lord Justice Clerk, Lady Dorrian; and the Lord Clerk Register, Lord Mackay of Clashfern, the 90-year-old Tory peer who was both Lord Advocate of Scotland and Lord Chancellor in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major.

Historic Environment Scotland, as current custodian of the Stone within Edinburgh Castle, has refused to state a position on its relocation.

A spokesperson for the public body said: “Relocating the Stone is a decision for the Commissioners of the Regalia as per the 1996 Royal Warrant, which sets out arrangements and responsibilities for the safekeeping of the Stone at the castle. The commissioners’ role is to advise HM Queen Elizabeth on all matters relating to the Stone including any long-term moves or temporary exchanges, and this is where the final decision lies.”