Power, glory, royalty or immortality—wearing a glittering crown upon your head can symbolize all of the above. For centuries, hungry individuals have vied for the chance to place the bejeweled structure upon their heads. That doesn’t exclude you, reader—you can’t tell me you haven’t played dress up as your favorite Disney Princess, or wrangled for the crown that appears above your head when you’re winning in Mario Kart.

Crowns have been used as symbols of reverence long before they made it to the steps of Buckingham Palace. The world’s oldest crown is said to be a blackened copper apparatus, seven inches in diameter and seven inches high, originating from an industrious culture of the Copper Age (4500-3600 BCE). Pharaohs of Egypt also wore unique crowns, while members of many Native American tribes wore grand headdresses made of rare feathers. Other precursors to modern crowns included diadems worn by emperors like Constantine I and later rulers of the Roman Empire.

Tiaras, on the other hand, started off as simple headbands used to crown Olympic winners and victorious warriors in Ancient Greece. By the 18th century, diamond-embellished tiaras were prevalent among European and Russian royal courts.

Notable crowns have appeared all across literature and media. Think of the dozens of crowns worn by powerful figures in Lord of the Rings or Game of Thrones (I still think about Viserys’ “golden crown” all the time). There’s also the stunning headpiece worn by Satine in “Moulin Rouge” and Elizabeth Taylor’s ornamental headdress in 1963’s “Cleopatra.” As for tiaras, Anne Hathaway’s pearl-studded tiara from “The Princess Diaries” comes to mind, as well as the melted metal headpiece from “Black Swan.” Through and through, these objects symbolize everything from pride and success to royalty and ostentation.

If you can’t get your hands on one of these precious accessories, perhaps a tattoo of said symbol will do the job instead. A crown tattoo can represent anything from an appreciation for immaculate beauty to a strong sense of self-empowerment, and will undoubtedly make a captivating addition to your tattoo collection. Before you know it, you’ll have everyone bowing down to your majesty.