Is God's description of Himself as being above the Throne in the Qur'an literal or metaphorical, and has any hadith or interpretation by Ibn Abbas been reported regarding this?

Allah has affirmed for Himself the attribute of "istiwa' (ascending/establishing Himself) over the Throne" in the Quran. This is an actual attribute affirmed by the Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jama'ah without distortion or anthropomorphism. The istiwa' is real and befits His majesty, glory be to Him. Its modality is unknown to us; therefore, we relegate its modality to Allah. The pious predecessors of the Ummah unanimously agreed on affirming attributes for Allah Almighty as they truly are. The Kursi (Footstool) is the place of Allah's feet, and the 'Arsh (Throne) is of immeasurable grandeur. This interpretation by Ibn Abbas indicates that the istiwa' is real. The variations in Quranic translations are due to differences in its interpretations and the influence of translators' madhhabs (schools of thought).