to this day in 1966, a foreign tour to the Bahamas and a young queen in a helmet made of overlapping white silk ribbons by Aage Thaarup. Just when I think we’ve seen all of Queen Elizabeth’s most memorable hats, a new treasure comes to light.
Photo from Lynn Pelham via Getty
Royal Hats 
In a word: ghastly!
This was a popular hat style for HM during this time of her reign, but I never found it appealing. Like JamesB said, “[t]he 60s were an odd time for millinery” unfortunately; when they got it right, it was right, and when it was wrong . . .
These brimless hats which, if we are to believe it, were designed to allow the public to better see The Queens’ face, certainly gave zero protection from the glare. No wonder HM is so frequently photographed with furrowed brow when wearing these styles in sunny climes; especially since protocol appears to prohibit her from wearing sunglasses at so many events. I can’t help wondering if this has something to do with why she wears brimmed hats exclusively these days…
Yes, indeed there is a resemblance to a barrister’s wig, or a sixties floral swimming cap of exactly the same era. Gosh, my mother had several of those caps. So necessary for women who liked to swim, before the blowdryer was invented!
I like all HM’s hats of this era, though this one is let down by the styling.The neckline of the beautiful dress is too low for the necklace, and the earrings are too bitty, relative to the size of the hat ribbons. We can see from the below pic that HM carried a black bag, which probably meant black shoes as well – a nice change from the “white hat-white gloves-white bag-white shoes” formula which she often used at that time:
https://www.gettyimages.com.au/detail/news-photo/an-unidentified-pair-of-schoolgirls-of-bow-before-british-news-photo/637768392#an-unidentified-pair-of-schoolgirls-of-bow-before-british-monarch-picture-id637768392
I was speaking to my mother yesterday and mentioned this hat – we have pictures of my grandmother (who never left the house without a hat) wearing hats similar to these for family weddings etc in the 60s – my mother said she complained about this kind of style along the lines of “do they think I want to go swimming?”
LOL!
A swimming cap or a barristers wig – I’m trying to decide which description I agree with more!
My goodness! What a hat! At first glance I thought “This is a helmet of white ribbons” but upon further reflection I find myself smiling and thinking that I really love this hat. Actually the whole ensemble is perfect for the Bahamas.I’d love to see her whole outfit, white purse and shoes probably. Her Majesty is also wearing her 3 strand pearl necklace and Queen Mary button pearl earrings that she still wears today.i can’t see her brooch very well so I can’t identify it but perhaps others can?
It’s the City of London Lily to my eye.
SoCal Gal,yes, in some other thread months ago, we were discussing how long ago it had been since HM had started wearing those earrings and pearls all the time, and the conclusion was that it had been since “at least” the mid-60s, but this is one of the best photos I’ve seen showing them in such clear detail, particularly the pearls unobscured by a neckline or collar. I can’t help but wonder though if she has multiple identical sets, as pearls at some point need to be both cleaned and restrung!
It looks like a barrister’s wig to me.
No wonder we never saw this one again! Oh, dear, the 60s produced some shockers………… There was no consistency to The Queen’s or Princess Margaret’s hats – The Queen Mother’s were all alike.
Oh I think if you dig about in the mid 60s you’ll find a lot more where this came from. The 60s were an odd time for millinery!
As you say a very strange time for millinery. This resembles a swimming cap. I could imagine Serena Snowdon wearing this.