Meet Prof Anionwu, the Igbo Woman at the Center of King Charles Coronation | #NwokeukwuMascot

Prof Elizabeth Nneka Anionwu

The woman in African attire with a head tie is Dame Elizabeth Nneka Anionwu, an inspiring woman.  She's a Professor  of Nursing at the University of West London.

She came to look for her biological father in Nigeria at her adult age. She grew up being abused as a young woman by her white stepfather, married to her white mother.  She was put in a care home, and she achieved success.

She met her father at a later age. Her father was Lawrence Anionwu, the first permanent secretary of the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the First Ambassador to Italy. Despite that,  she was placed in care, and her stepfather abused her because of her colour. She is proudly a Professor Emeritus, Dame, and CBE. She is always proud to be associated with Nigeria.

Yesterday at King Charles' coronation, she was nominated to carry the king's gold orb. She is an accomplished professor emeritus.

The Sovereign's Orb, originally commissioned from royal goldsmith Robert Vyner for the 1661 coronation of King Charles II, the Sovereign's Orb represents the monarch's power. The spherical shape and the cross topper is meant to symbolize a Christian world, while the three sections divided by bejeweled bands symbolize the three known continents during the medieval era.

Nneka was invested dame by Queen Elizabeth. She  spent her life working with black and minority ethnic communities.

She carried the orb at the King's coronation and was spotted wearing a very lovely turquoise igbo outfit of blue lace shirt and skirt and a white gele. 

She also wears a lot of Igbo attire and wore it as her investiture.