Being a monarch comes with its perks, one of which is being showered with gifts all the time.
To mark Queen Elizabeth’s 91th birthday, here’s a look at some of the strangest gifts ever bequeathed to Her Majesty...
Horse semen
Our horse-loving monarch was probably put off riding for a while after breeder Christina Patino gifted her £5,000 worth of stud sperm from one of her premium animals.
A bag of salt
The British Virgin Islands’ Governor John Duncan was nice enough to gift Her Maj a 1lb bag of salt in 2015. There was a reason, however. It represented an old tradition where the archipelago’s Salt Island would pay Queen Victoria an annual rent from its famous salt ponds. Sadly, Duncan’s gift was lost by a member of palace staff.
Two sloths
Lizzie popped over to Brazil in 1968 and was presented with two sloths.
She probably thought: “What the bloody hell am I supposed to do with these?” - they ended up being donated to London Zoo.
A wine cooler that looks like a grasshopper
President and Mrs Pompidou of France gave this oddity to Liz in 1972. Doesn’t really fit with the rest of the decor.
A book about Arab horses
The ambassador of Bahrain once gave the Queen a copy of ‘Arab Horse – a historical record of the Al-Khalifa’s Arab Horse Strains’. Sounds like a great coffee table book.
A framed origami bird
Queenie was given this peculiar gift by The Tom Smith Group during a trip to Wales.
A marzipan model of the Brandenburg Gate
During a state visit to Germany, president Joachim Gauck presented Liz with a marzipan representation of Berlin’s most iconic landmark.
A bristle brush boot scraper
Come on guys, when have you ever seen the Queen wear boots?
A box of mud
This’d go well with her boot scraper - in 2014 the Wellington Barracks presented Her Majesty with a silver box of soil from the WWI battlefields.
An Oyster card
On the 150th anniversary of the London Underground network, The Queen was given a commemorative Oyster card during a visit to Baker Street station. Not sure how much use she’ll get out of it.
A pair of cowboy boots
Yet another gift that she’ll never use, Her Majesty was given a pair of cowboy boots during a trip to the US in 1991.