Queen Mary of Denmark celebrates 53rd birthday with stunning new portrait - but is her telling pose making a subtle statement?

A stunning new portrait of Queen Mary of Denmark has been released to mark her 53rd birthday with her engagement ring positioned front and centre in the frame. Snapped by longtime royal photographer Steen Evald, Queen Mary, 53, is seen perching on a cream sofa in a gold-lined room in Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen. In a sweet post on Instagram, the Danish Royal Household said: 'Her Majesty the Queen has a birthday and is turning 53 today.'.

As she smiles with her hands carefully placed on her lap, the Queen may be drawing attention to her stunning diamond and ruby engagement ring - after rumours of marital strife following 'affair' rumours centred around King Frederik and a Mexican socialite (who denied any such suggestion). With her brown tresses down in soft blow-dried waves, the Queen wears a sleek white blouse and a lace skirt in pale pink.

In the stunning portrait, Mary opted for minimal makeup with a shimmering bronze powder dusted over her eyelids and a pink gloss applied on her lips. The mother-of-four completed her elegant look with several pieces of jewellery including chandelier earrings and a dainty silver ring on her right hand. But it was her ruby and diamond engagement ring that took centre stage with its colours matching the flag of Denmark.

Snapped by longtime royal photographer Steen Evald, Queen Mary , 53, is seen perching on a cream sofa in a gold-lined room in Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen. In a sweet post on Instagram, the Danish Royal Household said: 'Her Majesty the Queen has a birthday and is turning 53 today'. The stunning piece features a central emerald-cut diamond flanked by two rubies and diamond baguettes. It is estimated to be worth £40,000.

The five stones are thought to symbolise Mary's husband King Frederik, 56, and their four children Crown Prince Christian, 19, Princess Isabella, 17, and 14-year-old twins Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine. Mary's ring placement may well be a subtle statement, more than a year after her husband, King Frederik, became embroiled in 'affair' rumours with Genoveva Casanova, the Mexican socialite, after they were spotted enjoying a night out together in Madrid.

While the Danish Palace did not comment on the rumours, Casanova strongly denied any suggestion of an affair. Speaking about Queen Mary's stunning sparkler, Steven Stone Jewellers diamond expert Maxwell Stone previously told FEMAIL: 'With a 1.50 carat emerald-cut diamond centre stone, sat between two 70-point emerald cut rubies, Princess Mary of Denmark's stunning engagement ring originally had an estimated value of $40,000 USD (£30,000).

'Since her wedding, the Crown Princess has added two 50-point diamond baguettes, which have undoubtedly increased the value and I'd estimate this to be $50,000 USD (£40,000). 'When we see a ring with multiple stones like this, they typically represent something and it's likely that Princess Mary's alteration is a sentimental one, with the four stones reportedly representing the couple's four children.'.

Royal fans quickly flooded the comments to wish the mother-of-four a happy birthday. 'Big congratulations on your birthday beautiful talented Queen Mary,' one said. Another described the queen as 'beautiful', 'wonderful' and 'lovely', while a third added: 'The best queen in the world.'. The engagement ring was designed to match the national flag of Denmark and originally featured a 1.5 carat emerald-cut diamond positioned between two emerald cut rubies (pictured).

Mary poses with then Crown Prince Frederik as the pair announce their engagement. On May 14, 2004, Mary married her Prince Frederik in a lavish ceremony attended by royals - and media - from across the globe in Copenhagen Cathedral in the Danish capital. Queen Mary is likely celebrating her birthday with family at their official residence in Copenhagen but it remains to be seen whether or not her eldest son Prince Christian will be in attendance.

The royal teenager arrived at the Antvorskov barracks in Slagelse on Monday to start his military duty. The young prince has joined the military for four months as an officer for the Gardehusarregimentet or the Guard Hussar Regiment - a military battle troop and cavalry unit of the Royal Danish Army. His military training comes after the prince spent three months in east Africa on an adventure he said he would 'never forget'.

Christian told his one million Instagram followers: 'I have been in East Africa for almost three months. Everyday life down here is something completely different than at home. 'The food, the culture, the climate, the wildlife, the tasks and the people make it an experience I will never forget. 'In recent weeks I've been working with nature preservation. I'm both supervising and registering animals in the bush and taking care of the office on the farm.