A photo campaign organized by the Thai government and held to mark the 60th anniversary of Thai King Bhumibol’s accession to the throne, asked people to select the six best pictures of their king.
One of the shots voted in the top six also features a Danish king and queen.
The six best shots were chosen by popular vote using SMS. The campaign registered more than 175,000 votes, singling out the best shots from a great number of entries submitted from all over Thailand. The shots selected follow the King through his 60 years on the throne – the oldest one being from 1958 and the latest from 1990.
Taking fourth place is a picture providing evidence of the long history Denmark enjoys as a friend of Thailand.
The picture taken in 1962 features the Thai King and visiting Danish King Frederik IX, and his wife Queen Ingrid.
The photo was taken shot at a train station in Saraburi where the royals are greeted by two nursery school girls. One of the girls in the picture submitted the picture to the competition with a personal note underlining that meeting the royals was a once in a lifetime experience for her.
Denmark joins
Frederik IX was the King of Denmark from 1947 to 1972 and was succeeded on the throne by Queen Margrethe (II).
As King Bhumibol celebrates his 60-year anniversary next month Margrethe’s husband Prince Henrik is joining the celebrations representing the Danish royal house.
The photo with the visiting Danish King and Queen won 19,821 votes. The winning picture got 27,637 votes and features the Thai King and Queen boosting the morale of a hospitalized soldier, who was wounded while battling communists in 1967.
The six winning photos will be on display during an exhibition in honour of the Thai King on display at the Impact Arena in Bangkok from May 26 to June 4. Photos which did not make the final six will also be on display.
