Private glimpse of girl who would be Queen: Rare charcoal sketch of Princess Elizabeth aged 23 to go under the hammer

In two years’ time she would be Queen, her face printed on millions of stamps and banknotes.
But at 23, she was still Princess Elizabeth – and this rare sketch offers a very private glimpse of that young woman, in all her girlish beauty.
Drawn in charcoal and red chalk, the portrait shows the princess with rosebud lips and fine features, her large eyes lost in thought.
The sketch has come to light ahead of its sale at Bloomsbury Auctions in London.

Girlish beauty: The rare sketch shows the Queen - then a princess - at 23 The Queen, right, said she fondly remembered sitting for the artist

It was drawn in February 1950 by Dame Laura Knight, an impressionist painter also known for depicting the world of London’s theatre, ballet and circus.
It has never been in the Royal Collection because Dame Laura made it for her own purposes, perhaps as a study to a larger portrait.
But the sketch was recently shown to the Queen herself, who said that she fondly remembered sitting for the artist.

 

At the time she would have been in the early stages of pregnancy with Princess Anne, who was born in August 1950.
The portrait has remained hidden from the public since the father of the current owner, who wished to remain anonymous, bought it from Dame Laura in 1969, the year before her death.
In a letter written to the buyer, she said: ‘I value the drawing of “Princess Elizabeth”, who bloomed like a flower in the field, and loved a bit of fun when occasion permitted.’

Mother: The Queen with baby Anne, left, in 1950. Pictured right is the artist Dame Laura Knight in 1936

Robert Hall, pictures specialist at the auctioneer, said: ‘It’s  a refreshing view of the Queen as a human.
‘You can see the beautiful spirit in her eyes. In terms of beauty she has always been overshadowed by Princess Margaret but you see here that she was a very pretty girl. She was in the bloom of youth. It’s a little window into the Queen that we have forgotten.’
The sketch, valued at up to £12,000, will go on sale along with a series of letters between Dame Laura and the buyer.
A letter from Edward Young, deputy private secretary to the Queen, is also included. Dated February 2011, it confirms the sketch had been shown to the monarch.