Buckingham Palace on Tuesday shared a timeless photograph of Queen Elizabeth II on social media to announce the end of the royal mourning period and signal a return to official duties for members of the royal family.
The black and white portrait was taken by society photographer Dorothy Wilding during the Queen’s first official photography sitting following her accession to the throne in February 1952.
Wilding took dozens of photographs of the Queen, who died on September 8 at the age of 96, during two sittings. They subsequently appeared “on postage stamps from 1953 until 1971, as well as providing the official portrait which was sent to every British embassy throughout the world,” according to the Royal Collection Trust.