As Prince Phillip retires and the Duke of Cambridge steps up to his new role of representing the Queen on a full-time basis, there's a certain sense of an imminent sea-change in the operation of the British Monarchy.
It's not at all surprising therefore to find that there is a retrospective exhibition at Buckingham Palace of a very tiny sample of the Royal Gifts that the Queen has received in the last 65 years - since she ascended to the throne on 6 February 1952.
Put simply there will never ever be another exhibition like this one - simply because it will be a very long time before any monarch reigns for more than 65 years...
Also - if you enjoy the British Museum and its ethnographic displays of people and their heritage then you will enjoy this exhibition - where you can see some of the very best of the very best examples of craftsmanship, skills and materials from around the world.
Royal Gifts exhibition
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| A view of the Africa Exhibit in the State Dining Room gives you a sense of scale |
The extremely popular
Summer Opening of the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace (until October 1st) has an exhibition every year.
It's not at all surprising that this year's exhibition looks back at one particular aspect of the very long reign of Queen Elizabeth - and also one which will be of much interest to people from all over the world. Which during August is most of the people on the streets of central London! ;)
I visited the exhibition last week (
for a special Bloggers Preview) and was able to see and admire the gifts on display. (
PS I had intended this post for Friday but Blogger went on strike!)
All the gifts were presented to the Queen
- as part of official duties - such as state visits and audiences.
- during visits she makes in the UK for various events - such as a visit to a School (and it was very pleasing to see a number of gifts related to children)
The exhibition explores Her Majesty's role as Head of State, Head of the Commonwealth and Head of Nation through gifts presented by people from all walks of life and from over 100 countries and territories during State Visits, overseas tours and official engagements both at home and abroad.
The exhibition is an excellent example of ritual and decorative art and has been organised by
Sally Goodsir, Assistant Curator of Decorative Arts. She told us that she aimed to select one piece from all the countries visited and to make that selection representative of the country and in particular of particular materials or skills unique to that place.
I'm going to give you a sample of images of items below from the different continents.
Plus an insight into the nature of the Tribute to Diana, Princess of Wales which comes at the end of the exhibition - to mark the 20th anniversary of her death at the end of this month.
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Display of Diana Princess of Wales personal possessions
within the context of her timeline |
