Hti

The royal white umbrella or hti phyu taw (ထီးဖြူတော်) was one of the five articles of coronation regalia (မင်းမြောက်တန်ဆာ, Min Mhyauk Tanza).

[5] Indeed, use of a white umbrella by any persons other than the king and his chief queen was regarded as a declaration of rebellion, punishable with immediate execution.

[8] The number of umbrellas in one's possession was also an indication of social status, as they were showcased during public processions and put up in prominent places at home.

The hti is then decorated with golden or gold-plated brass and bronze bells (ခေါင်းလောင်း), and at jewelry donated by devotees.

[11] The hti belongs to the magaik form,[12] and is set with over 5,500 diamonds, 2,300 rubies, sapphires and other gems, and 4,000 golden bells.

[11] The older hti, donated by the penultimate King of Burma, Mindon Min, can be seen at a temple inside the middle platform (အလယ်ပစ္စယ or ရင်ပြင်တော်) of the pagoda's compound.

Said hti at Shwedagon is a gilt iron-work umbrella, on each of whose many rings hangs multitudes of gold and silver jewelled bells.