The Princess Diana Statue Included a Nod to an Old Royal Christmas Card

Published Jul 2, 2021

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3:23pm

Princess Diana was well-known for her royal style. And it appears the new statue created in her honor was crafted with that in mind.

The monument was unveiled on Thursday—which also marked what would have been Diana's 60th birthday—in the Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace. Prince William and Prince Harry were both in attendance and looked happy to pay tribute to the late princess. During the special event, the Duke of Cambridge and the Duke of Sussex pulled the covering off to unveil the statue, which featured their mother with her arms around three young children.

WPA Pool / Pool/ Getty images

We previously learned that the piece was commissioned by the princes in 2017 to mark the 20th anniversary of the Princess of Wales’s death and as a way to “recognize her positive impact” on the world. The piece was created by artist Ian Rank-Broadley, a British sculptor whose portrait of Queen Elizabeth appears on all U.K. coins.

And it looks like he put a lot of thought into the details of the statue, including Diana’s ensemble. The princess is wearing a button-down, a mid-length skirt and a belt. As People points out, Diana’s statue outfit was inspired by one she wore in a family Christmas card from the early ’90s. The card, which can be seen below, included the princess posed with her two sons behind the couch.

It’s possible that the similarities in ensembles could be a coincidence, however, the outfit had to be inspired from somewhere and this seems to be a match.

We love this keen attention to detail.

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Alexandra Hough

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