Princess Helena (1846-1923) 1850
Watercolour on ivory laid on card | 6.1 x 5.8 cm (support, canvas/panel/stretcher external) | RCIN 420341
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This is the fifth miniature by Ross to have been acquired by Prince Albert as part of the set of circular miniatures of the royal children painted between 1845 and 1857. The inscription on the reverse of the frame has led to it being incorrectly identified as Princess Louise. It is, in fact, Princess Helena, an identification that is substantiated by the consistent inscriptions on the reverse of copies of this image, such as the enamel by William Bell (421564; Royal Collection) and the copy in Queen Victoria’s 1845 birthday bracelet (4797; Royal Collection). The date is given on the reverse of Bell’s enamel as June 1850, when the Princess would have been just four years old. Queen Victoria wrote to Leopold I, King of the Belgians, on 12 February 1850: ‘By far the beauty of the Pcesses is little Lenchen who certainly much resembles Alfred who I think keeps his good looks & his fine large figure & limbs’ (RA VIC/Y 95/5). Signed on the reverse in grey wash: Painted by Sir W.C. Ross / R.A. / Miniature Painter [to] / The Queen
Provenance
Commissioned by Prince Albert as a gift for Queen Victoria
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Creator(s)
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Medium and techniques
Watercolour on ivory laid on card
Measurements
6.1 x 5.8 cm (support, canvas/panel/stretcher external)
7.4 x 6.9 cm (frame, external)
Category
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Other number(s)