Magna Carta gets 38 mln U.S. dollar insurance cover ahead of world tour

he British government Tuesday announced it had insured a rare original copy of the famous Magna Carta for 24 million pounds (almost 38 million U.S. dollars) ahead of a global tour.

The insurance indemnity, backed by the British Treasury, covers the loss or any damage to one of only a handful of the 800-year-old documents kept at Hereford Cathedra. It is the only surviving King's writ issued by King John in 1215, British foreign office minister Hugo Swire announced.

The insurance cover will apply from Sept. 1 until the end of the year.

This year celebrations have been taking place across Britain to mark the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta which protected the rights and freedoms of society. It also established the principle that no-one was above the law, including the monarch.

King John signed Magna Carta under duress after a group of English barons rebelled. It underwent several revisions over the following few years.

The copy held at Hereford Cathedral is described as the "finest surviving 1217 Magna Carta", a significant revision of the original 1215 charter.

King John's Magna Carta document, known as a writ, is a letter to royal officials across England issued after his meeting with the barons at Runnymede in 1215.

Recipients of it were instructed to ensure the terms of the charter were made known publicly, sworn to and kept.

In a written statement to parliament, Swire said: "We have secured the agreement of the dean and chapter of Hereford Cathedral to use their 1217 Magna Carta and only surviving King's Writ from Runnymede 1215 for this tour." Endit