New look at Queen Victoria in exhibition

LONDON, Oct. 16 (UPI) -- A previously unseen, quite different picture of British Queen Victoria goes on exhibition soon in London, showing her as a glamorous young woman, officials say.

The portrait, known as "the secret picture," by German artist Franz Xaver, commissioned in 1843, shows the 24-year-old queen with her long brown hair loose around her shoulders, gazing into the distance,the Daily Telegraph aid.

It was reported to be her husband Albert's favorite picture.

The portrait is one of 400 paintings, drawings, photographs and sculptures to appear in an exhibition at Buckingham Palace, focusing on the time between her secession to the throne in 1837 and Albert's death in 1861.