The portrait of the Queen in Westminster Abbey was defaced.
A man has been arrested on suspicion of defacing a portrait of the Queen in Westminster Abbey, police have confirmed.
Officers were called to the Abbey around 12.30pm today after security guards detained a 41-year-old man.
He was arrested on suspicion of criminal damage and taken to a central London police station where he is in custody, a Metropolitan Police spokesman said.
The portrait, Ralph Heimans’ oil on canvas designed to commemorate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, had been on display in the Chapter House for a few weeks before it was vandalised with paint. It has since been removed from public view.
An Abbey spokesman said: “In an incident at lunchtime today, a visitor to the Abbey sprayed paint on the Ralph Heimans portrait of the Queen presently on display in the Chapter House.
“Until work can be done to remedy the damage it will, very regrettably, not be possible to have the painting on public view.”
