Camilla will use an ivory sceptre during the King’s Coronation, which risks sparking an environmental backlash and a rebuke from her son-in-law. There had been speculation that she would not hold the Queen Consort’s Rod with Dove, given the Prince of Wales has long been a vociferous critic of the contemporary ivory trade. William has campaigned to stop the illegal trafficking of animal parts, like rhino horn and elephant ivory, through his umbrella organisation United for Wildlife.

Last August, the heir hailed a “landmark” illegal wildlife trade sentencing that saw a man jailed for five years for conspiring to traffic millions of dollars worth of rhinoceros horns and elephant ivory.

He has been a vocal supporter of ending the illegal wildlife trade for years and has been a patron of the conservation charity Tusk Trust since 2005.

It was previously reported that William wants all ivory in the royal collection at Buckingham Palace to be removed and destroyed. Leading primatologist Dr Jane Goodall said William had told her he would “like to see all the ivory owned by Buckingham Palace destroyed”.

Britain is at the forefront of global conservation efforts after the Ivory Act 2018 brought in, from June 6 last year, a near-total ban on the dealing of items containing elephant ivory.

But Buckingham Palace appears unphased by the use of the ivory staff at the Coronation and suggested use of such material was inevitable given the age of the regalia.

A spokeswoman said: “As with any historical collection of its size, it is to be expected that the Royal Collection includes items that contain ivory as this reflected the taste at the time.”

The sceptre was made in 1685 for Queen Mary of Modena, the wife of James II, and has been used by every Queen Consort since. It is formed from three sections of ivory and is just over 3-foot long.

The piece is said to symbolise equity and mercy, and the dove, with its folded wings, represents the Holy Spirit and is very similar to the King’s sceptre.

Using the controversial ivory staff also proves counter-intuitive to the King’s bid to modernise and shy away from contentious issues.

In February it was announced that Camilla will wear a recycled crown for the Coronation that will not feature the highly disputed Koh-i-Noor diamond. The jewel, seized by the East India Company in 1849 and presented to Queen Victoria, and which featured in the late queen mother’s crown in 1937, had been a subject of fierce debate.

For many in India, the diamond represents the humiliation of colonisation and its ruling party had warned against its use at the upcoming Coronation. Prime minister Narendra Modi said choosing to wear the Koh-i-noor would bring back “painful memories of the colonial past”.

But the Palace has played it safe and Camilla will wear a different crown that does not feature the controversial jewel. Instead, Camilla will become the first Queen Consort to reuse a crown since the 18th century. Several modifications are being made ahead of the service on May 6.

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