The Royal Collection is celebrating the 50th anniversary of PNG independence in its own way by displaying the restored and reframed portrait of her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II by the noted PNG artist Matthias Kauage (1944-2003)

Mathias Kauage's vibrant portrait Missis Kwin, presented to Queen Elizabeth II in 1996, is now on display at Hampton Court Palace. The title refers to the sitter's name in Tok Pisin, one of the national languages of Papua New Guinea. The Queen is shown wearing a traditional bilas ceremonial headdress in the style of the Chimbu people, Kauage's homeland, an emblem of power, leadership and status and meticulously crafted from the feathers of birds of paradise and parrots. Reframed for Papua New Guinea's 50th Anniversary of Independence, the painting is a powerful tribute from one of the country's best-known contemporary artists.