Long description

This colour photograph pictures its subject in half-length portrait format. Mirren as the Duchess is brightly lit against a black background. Her low-cut black dress has a tight panel across the bodice, cross-hatched with white embroidery. The same pattern is repeated on tight-fitting lower sleeves. A high black collar, heavily overlaid and scalloped with white lace, stands up from the scooped neck of the dress, forming a circular shape behind Mirren’s head. Her hair is up, with curls emerging at the front beneath an ornate, jewelled tiara. Her gaze is directed towards the right, and her expression neutral.