All hail the Queen: Portrait from Winnipeg Jets' old home on display at downtown bar

Winnipeg Jets fans who remember seeing the giant portrait of Queen Elizabeth II at the old arena can see Her Majesty once again, albeit briefly, outside a downtown pub on Thursday.

Crews hoistedthe 600-pound, 35-square-metre painting onto the outside south wall of The Pint on Garry Street, between Portage and Graham avenues, on Thursday afternoon.

Fans have until about 1 a.m. Friday to check out the portrait.

It's the first time the painting has been on display since it was taken down from the rafters of the Winnipeg Arena before it was torn down.

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It languished in a storage facility in Ontario from 2002 until last year, when CN Rail executives Jamie Boychuk and Michael Cory bought it with the intent of bringing it back to Manitoba.

Questions lingered about where in Winnipeg the portrait could be displayed. Officials with the MTS Centre, the Jets' current home, have said the facility cannot accommodate the large painting.

Boychuk, who took ownership of the painting in February 2015, would only say it has since been kept in storage at an undisclosed location.

"The sole goal was to get it to Winnipeg," he told reporters at Thursday's unveiling.

"It was in Toronto, in storage, so we got it shipped here and the main purpose was to doexactly what we've been able to do today to get it out in the public so anyone can see it, everyone can see it, you don't have to pay any fees or charges, it's open to everybody."

When asked why he's been tight-lipped about hisplans for the portrait, Boychuk said he doesn't want to take it out too often.

"It's that piece of history in Winnipeg that deserves a surprise," he said.