The Belgian Royal Palace has released two official portraits to mark the 50th birthday of Queen Mathilde. One of the images will also be used on special commemorative stamps, with the Queen working alongside the Belgian Post Group on the design.
In one picture Mathilde is seen looking relaxed in the Winter Garden at the Palace of Laeken, the home of the Belgian royal family.
In another she is pictured posing in a doorway dressed all in white.
The royals shared an insight into the stamp production process on Twitter, with the clip showing heavy machinery pushing out sheets, which an official subsequently inspected for any imperfections.
The post is captioned: “The postman brought… the Queen’s new stamp!”
The new stamps will be available in post offices from Monday, with the next edition of royal postage coming out in June to celebrate King Philippe’s decade on the throne.
Queen Mathilde was born in Uccle, Belgium in 1973, working as a speech therapist before marrying then-Prince Philippe in 1999.
They have four children together – Princess Elisabeth, 21, Prince Gabriel, 19, Prince Emmanuel, 17, and Princess Eleonore, 14.
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The festive message inside was written in Belgium’s three official languages — Dutch, French and German — with a translation in English.
The message inside read: “Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.”
The Queen also supports a number of charitable ventures, including those for parenting, education, poverty, and mental health.
