Cover star: Kate poses for Vogue

RARE PORTRAIT: Kate poses in Norfolk, England, for the British Vogue’s centenary issue. (AP)
Updated 01 May 2016
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Cover star: Kate poses for Vogue

LONDON: The British edition of Vogue will mark its 100th anniversary with a rare portrait of Kate Middleton looking relaxed in the countryside.
The Duchess of Cambridge opts for a casual look in her first-ever cover shoot for Vogue. The fashion magazine is publishing a series of Middleton images shot by photographer Josh Olins in its June edition and some will be placed in Britain’s National Portrait Gallery.
Kensington Palace said Kate “hopes that people appreciate the portraits with the sense of relaxed fun with which they were taken.”
The casual clothes and settings provide a counterpoint to the more formal portraits commonly produced of senior royal figures.
The Duchess plans to visit the National Portrait Gallery in London on Wednesday to view the Vogue exhibit.


Trunk snapped off famed Bernini statue in Rome square

Updated 1 min 56 sec ago
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Trunk snapped off famed Bernini statue in Rome square

ROME, Feb 18 (Reuters) - A ‌marble elephant designed by Baroque master Gian Lorenzo Bernini has been damaged, with ​its left tusk found snapped off and lying at the base of the monument in the heart of Rome, authorities said.
The damage was uncovered on Monday night and police said they ‌would review ‌video footage from ​Piazza ‌della ⁠Minerva ​to determine whether ⁠the tusk was vandalised or simply fell off following weeks of unusually heavy rains.
Italy's Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli made clear he thought it was deliberate, saying the ⁠17th statue, which supports an ‌ancient Egyptian ‌obelisk, was victim of ​an "absurd act of ‌barbarity".
"It is unacceptable that once ‌again the nation's artistic and cultural heritage must suffer such serious damage," he said in a statement.
It is not ‌the first time the sculpture, popularly known as the Elefantino (little ⁠elephant), ⁠has been damaged.
In November 2016, the tip of the same tusk was similarly found broken off. The piece was reattached during restoration work.
The sculpture, created in 1667 by Ercole Ferrata based on a design by Bernini, stands a short distance from the ​Pantheon, one of ​most visited tourist sites in Rome. (Reporting by Francesca Piscioneri, editing by ​Crispian Balmer)