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1 of 253523 objects
Princess Amelia (1783-1810) Inscribed 1807
Oil on copper | 61.1 x 46.1 cm (support, canvas/panel/stretcher external) | RCIN 404871
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Stroehling’s work in the Royal Collection allows us to trace a rare example of continuity between the masters of the Dutch Golden Age and those of the early nineteenth century. Stroehling was brought up in Dusseldorf where a magnificent collection of the polished, classicising and elegant works (often on copper) by artists such as Adriaen van der Werff (1659-1722) had been formed by Johann Wilhelm II, Elector Palatine (1658-1716). Stroehling worked all over Europe but spend much of the first two decades of the nineteenth century in London; between 1810 and 1820 he was even styled ‘Historical Painter to the Prince of Wales’. Stroehling’s work elsewhere tended to be life-sized portraiture, but the Royal Collection has an important group of small-scale portraits on copper, executed with fine detail and a glossy finish; Joseph Farington perceptively referred to them as ‘painted in a Vanderwerfe manner’. Stroehling’s price for these ‘Cabinet Pictures’ was 200 guineas each, an impressive sum in the period even for a life-sized work. This is one of six paintings of the Queen and her five daughters, commissioned by George IV and delivered to Carlton House in December 1807 (OM 1094-9, 404863, 404869-70, 404866, 404864, 404871), which suggest that the Princesses are models of dignity and virtue from the ancient world, demonstrating every feminine accomplishment. Princess Amelia is shown standing in a mountainous landscape, striking a lyre which rests on the score of God Save the King; a classical sword and helmet lie on the ground beside her. Incised on the back with the name of the artist and sitter and ‘done at Windsor 1807’.
Provenance
Painted for George IV; returned to the artist for exhibition in 1808; recorded in store at Carlton House in 1816 (no 397) and 1819 (no 484); taken to the King's Lodge (Royal Lodge) in Windsor Park in 1823
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Creator(s)
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Medium and techniques
Oil on copper
Measurements
61.1 x 46.1 cm (support, canvas/panel/stretcher external)
90.4 x 75.3 x 11.0 cm (frame, external)