The oldest form is not three levels of heaven joined by a line, as the poetic reading has it, but the broad blade of a ceremonial battle-axe standing edge-down — the weapon only a ruler could hold. Authority was drawn as the instrument of authority.
王 is the most common surname in China, borne by around a hundred million people. It also names the best of anything: 王牌 is a trump card, and in chess 王 is the king. Add a dot and 王 becomes 玉 (jade) — the two characters have been quietly related for millennia, as 王 doubles as the jade radical.
The broad blade of a royal axe standing on its edge — the KING's own weapon.
王 is the most common surname in China. As a component on the left of a character it usually means jade, not king — 玩, 现 and 球 all carry it.