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Ahead of the late King Harald's final rituals, the Norway Royal Family shared a heartbreaking photograph of a grieving Queen Sonja.
King Harald passed away on August 28 at the age of 89, following a declining health.
In the photograph shared by the Norwegian Royal Family on Tuesday, September 8, Sonja could be seen standing before Harald's coffin.
The images showed Queen Sonja, dressed in mourning attire, visiting her husband's coffin, which lies in the Royal Palace in Oslo.
The grieving Queen appeared serene with her hands clasped and wearing a large Maltese cross brooch that belonged to Queen Maud of Norway.
Significance of Queen Sonja's jewel
The jewel first belonged to Queen Alexandra of the United Kingdom, Maud's mother, and from there was passed to the Scandinavian Royal Family.
The brooch consists of a diamond band and four detachable crosses.
Queen Sonja had already worn one of these crosses in January 1991 when her husband, King Harald, went to Parliament to be sworn in as the new king after the death of Olav V.
The caption of the post read, "Thank you for a good life."
King Harald passed away the day before the couple would have celebrated their 58th wedding anniversary.
Never-before-seen family photo
The emotional carousel also included a very personal image of King Harald from decades ago.
He was seen with Sonja, holding their children: Princess Märtha Louise and King Haakon VIII.
King Harald and Queen Sonja's love story
Sonja and Harald first met at a party in 1959. The late monarch, who was then a Norwegian prince, was a cadet at the Norwegian Military Academy at the time.
Sonja, the daughter of a clothing merchant, was studying French, English, and art history at the University of Oslo.
Falling in love at first sight, Harald invited Sonja to his military graduation ball that August, where they were photographed together for the first time.
Being the future heir to the throne, Harald was expected to marry a woman of noble birth, prompting the pair to keep their romance hidden for years.
In 1965, following his 30th birthday, Harald reached a breaking point and put forward an ultimatum in front of his father: either he would be permitted to marry Sonja, or he would never marry at all.
On March 18, 1968, King Olav announced the engagement, and Harald presented Sonja with a diamond and ruby ring that had belonged to his late mother, Princess Märtha.
In an emotional moment, King Olav walked Sonja down the aisle at their wedding on August 29, 1968, at Oslo Cathedral, as her father had died in 1959.
