DATELINE, ENGLAND:

A renowned sculptor working exclusively in the medium of artisanal miniatures has finished his pièce de résistance, his magnum opus, his nonesuch nonpareil: a portrait of the Queen of England carved onto a coffee bean. In classical homage to the stately grandiosity of Lord Leighton, this celebration of the Queen’s ongoing 2012 Diamond Jubilee is truly a timeless silk-sheets masterstroke. More from Digital Spy:

The world-renowned British micro-sculptor Willard Wigan used homemade tools that included a minuscule hair from a housefly’s back to carve the portrait. It is said to be the world’s smallest portrait of the Queen.

He stated that he has never sculpted on such a miniature scale – a person can only see the image of the Queen’s head using a magnifying glass as it is invisible to the naked eye.

Wigan said of the project: “This celebratory one-off portrait will hopefully commemorate the reign of Her Majesty for many years to come.”

The endeavor was a collaboration (which means they paid him) between Mr. Wigan and the folks at Douwe Egbert’s, whom we recall from our complimentary tote bags at WBC 2010. Read the full feature here, from which we’ve already excerpted all the juiciest bits.

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