Dec 19, 2006, 13:20 GMT
Britain's Queen Elizabeth has bought a portrait of herself for her private art collection.
The monarch purchased the oil and pastel study, painted in 1969 by Italian artist Pietro Annigoni, for an undisclosed sum from an unnamed source abroad.
Annigoni used the study to create a full-length painting of the queen, wearing her robes and insignia of the Order of the British Empire.
The picture - which shows Elizabeth aged 43 - was painted over 18 sittings.
Annigoni took the study back to his studio in Florence and is believed to have kept it until his death in 1988.
The picture is believed to have then ended up on the Italian art market.
The full-length painting created from the study was commissioned by the National Portrait Gallery and at the time it was unveiled, the monarch refused to reveal if it was to her liking.
She said: "It looks very different in the frame."
However, after yesterday's purchase, it appears the queen is a bigger admirer of Annigoni's talent than she first led everyone to believe.
A royal source told Britain's Daily Telegraph newspaper: "It is the first time the queen has done anything like this so it shows that it has huge personal value to her."
Buckingham Palace confirmed the study would stay in the queen's private collection and would not be consigned to the Royal Collection - a hoard of paintings collected by former monarchs - for the time being.
The portrait went on public show at the Queen's Gallery at the palace yesterday (18.12.06).
(C) BANG Media International
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