A Vogue style editor has been forced to apologise after posting a controversial photo on Instagram. Elisabeth von Thurn und Taxis, who is style editor-at-large with US Vogue, snapped an image of a homeless woman reading the magazine while she was in Paris for the city's Fashion Week. The heiress, who is descended from German royalty, later posted the photo to Instagram with the caption,“Paris is full of surprises… and @voguemagazine readers even in unexpected corners!”. However, the shot was quickly slammed by von Thurn und Taxis' followers on the social networking site, with many saying the image was "in poor taste" and "cruel". While she initially hit back to say “The person to me is as dignified as anyone else!”, she later backtracked and removed the photo, before issuing an apology. “I wanted to extend my sincerest apologies for the offence my post has caused,” she said. The woman in the photo has since been identified as Maryse Dumas and Radar Online is reporting that she has reminded von Thurn und Taxis that being homeless is “no joke.” “Look at me surrounded by all this rubbish. It’s ugly. It’s hard living on the street. It’s cold at night and if you can’t sleep, you get ill. My legs hurt and I’m losing my teeth.”