Description
Charles II (1630–1685) fled England in 1651 during the English civil war and commissioned this portrait during his exile in France. Charles II never fought on the battlefield, but he was the last British monarch to wear a full suit of armor, which represented his rank and status. The king gestures to the sea beyond the Dover cliffs, and the waiting fleet reveals his intention to return to England, which he did in 1660.
Provenance
Jules Feral (sale: Paris, Hotel Drouot, May 30, 1903, as portrait of James II by Lely); [E. Gimpel and Wildenstein, New York]; Stanley Mortimer, New York (sale: Parke-Bernet, December 2, 1944, no. 85, illus. p. 57); [Duveen Brothers, Inc., New York]. The Elisabeth Severance Prentiss Fund, 1959.
Accession Number
1959.38
Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
Framed: 182 x 141 x 15 cm (71 5/8 x 55 1/2 x 5 7/8 in.); Unframed: 129.5 x 97.2 cm (51 x 38 1/4 in.)
Classification
Painting
Credit Line
The Elisabeth Severance Prentiss Collection
