. The central Throne Hall, the most important part of the phra thinang, is where the king receives ambassadors, gives audiences on his birthday and holds state banquets for visiting kings and presidents A the rear of the throne hall in front of an arched niche stands the Phuttanthom throne on a muti-tiered marble dais, sheltered by a nine-tiered white umbrella and flanked on either side by seven-tiered white umbrellas over the figure of a deva holding the king's sword, and the royal signet casket flanked by figures of a lion and a kojosi. The long side walls are hung with paintings of past diplomatic missions: Louis XIV's reception of the mission sent by King Narai the Great of Ayutthaya, the reception by Queen Victoria of King Rama IV's ambassador, the reception at Fontainbleau of a Siamese mission to Emperor Napoleon Ill, and King Rama IV's reception of the French Envoy at the Aphinaoniwet Group.