The Iron Throne in Game of Thrones is forged from 200 swords. It resembles a spiky—and spooky—peacock. It looks distinctly uncomfortable. But then, comfort is not the point of a throne, which is a symbol of power and only incidentally a seat.
A ruler is said to “ascend to the throne” “usurp the throne,” or even “be toppled from the throne.” But the one thing that’s hard to imagine is a ruler being upstaged by a throne, which is the case with the Iron Throne. It’s melodramatic and over-the-top theatrical; a gamer’s idea of a seat of power, all adolescent bluster and visual bombast.
Real seats of power are not so ostentatious. Consider the throne of Charlemagne, who ruled over most of medieval Western Europe. The throne is in the Palatine chapel of the Aachen Cathedral.