Coconut basket 1953

These baskets represent an industry which Queen Salote of Tonga, who presented them, helped re-establish on the island of Tonga. Queen Salote had endeared herself to the British public after the 1953 Coronation service at Westminster Abbey, when she refused to let her carriage hood be put up despite the rain, and rode back to Buckingham Palace waving to the crowds.

During The Queen's Commonwealth Tour in 1953–54, Her Majesty visited Tonga, arriving by flying boat before being welcomed by a feast of yams, lobsters, fruit, pigs and coconut milk. These baskets were presented by Queen Salote during the visit. They were woven by local women, who develop distinctive patterns identifying their manufactures.