Unknown Artist, circa 1750, Portrait of Frederick the Great in a Tricorn

Unknown Artist, circa 1750

Portrait of Frederick the Great in a Tricorn

Oil on canvas. 69 x 56.5 cm.

** Certificate
Dr. Helmut Börsch-Supan, 16.7.2010

** Provenance
Private collection, North Germany.

Even after his first victories in the Silesian Wars of 1740 - 41, the demand for portraits of the victorious Prussian King increased both in- and outside of Berlin. The official prototype for this work, displaying identical features, clothing, and hat, was painted by the King's court painter Antoine Pesne. Therefore it is very difficult to attribute unsigned portraits of Frederick II to a specific artist.

The same applies to the present work, characterised by soft brushstrokes and sureness of composition. The artist has compacted the details of the original, the clothing, the Order of the Black Eagle, the orange sash, and the ermine-lined cloak, into a chest-length portrait, even including the helm with the laurel wreath and the diagonally placed marshal's baton. The piece was probably painted circa 1750.