Released by Buckingham Palace on the eve of the late monarch’s funeral, the photograph depicts the queen smiling at Windsor Castle. It was taken during the queen’s jubilee celebrations in June which marked 70 years since she ascended the throne. The queen was the longest-reigning monarch in British history. The two art deco-style brooches, created with aquamarines and diamonds, that the queen wears in the portrait were “among the most cherished in her jewelry collection” according to the Guardian. They were an 18th birthday present from her father King George VI and mother Queen Elizabeth. She also wears her signature three strand pearl necklace and her pearl earrings. Both pearl pieces have been worn by Kate, the new Princess of Wales, during the period of mourning for the late monarch this week. The pearls were the same ones that the queen wore when she posed for her official jubilee portrait earlier this year. In the portrait, the queen poses in a window seat at Windsor Castle with the iconic Round Tower visible through the window behind her. Reminders of the queen’s predecessors float to the fore in the unassuming portrait, like the blurred statue of King Charles II visible in the grounds and the fact that the queen is posing in the Victoria Vestibule, named for her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria. When the queen turned 96 in April a new photograph in which she poses with her ponies was released. The ponies’ names are Bybeck Nightingale and Bybeck Katie. Next up, The Royal Family’s Website has been Updated to Reflect the New Line of Succession—But Where are Archie and Lili’s Titles?
