Princess Diana Posing Awkwardly in Front of the Pyramids in Egypt, 1992

During her visit to Egypt in 1992, Princess Diana refused to stand in front of the pyramids for a picture, feeling nervous and saying, “The picture will be boring, and I’ll look ridiculous!”

The photographer responded, “Madam, the pyramids are one of the seven wonders of the world, and you are the eighth. Can we take the picture?” She laughed and said, “How could I refuse your request?”

Standing awkwardly alone with her head slightly tilted to the side and her arms crossed, showing no intention of faking any pose for the media, Princess Diana was pictured next to the Great Pyramids of Giza – a photo that would later be regarded as one of the most iconic.

Known as the People’s Princess who broke with royal traditions, she often had a tradition of showing her mood in photos, whether she was happy or unhappy. It was that very reason which “drew the public” to her photographs.

The day before Diana was visiting the Pyramids, she told her personal photographer Anwar Hussein that she did not feel comfortable taking the photograph. “When people ask me to stand in front of places like the Pyramids, I feel awkward, especially when I’m on my own. I don’t like posing. But I will do it really quickly—and once—and you can grab the picture,” she had instructed.

Hussein ended up taking a number of pictures that captured a variety of different shots, and in each one she is seen to be absorbed in the moment. The British tabloids were disappointed with the photographs, photographer Norbert Schiller noted, not only because the poses were seen as boring and awkward, but also because the tan-colored outfit did not stand out with the desert scenery.

Photographs provide a rich glimpse of culture – telling stories about people, daily life, or a society. Princess Diana’s photograph, in this case, did not just show an awkward pose next to the pyramids, but a peek into the horrors of a celebrity-obsessed world that obsesses with the documentation of the lives of public figures that are often segregated from the world of the general public.

Photographer Norbert Schiller, who was also present taking photographs during the trip in 1992, recalled how Princess Diana’s visit to Egypt foreshadowed her death in 1997 as it showed the media’s obsession with capitalizing on her every move. These incidents revealed the level of insanity that Princess Diana was forced  to endure, no matter how hard she tried to protest it with an awkward pose.

“She was unable to escape the merciless pursuit which eventually led to her violent and tragic death,” he wrote.

(via Egyptian Streets)