Design for a statue of George II in Roman armour by William Kent (1685-1748).

Preliminary drawing for a statue of George II in Roman armour, carrying a baton in his right hand, standing upon a pedestal on which is an inscription surrounded by a wreath supporting a crown by William Kent.

This is possibly based on the statue of James II by Grinling Gibbons now in Trafalgar Square and related to that of George II by J M Rysbrack at the Royal Naval College, Greenwich.

Sculptures known to have been designed by Kent are relatively few but are accorded positions of great prominence. In Westminster Abbey Kent designed the monuments to Newton and Earl Stanhope (both carved by John Michael Rysbrack) and to Shakespeare (carved by Peter Scheemakers) and received substantial fees for doing so. He also designed the figures of Palladio and Inigo Jones (carved by Rysbrack) for the entrance front of Lord Burlington’s Chiswick House. It is, therefore, possible that he may have designed sculptures for other locations.

Preliminary drawing by William Kent (1685-1748) for a statue of George II in Roman armour, carrying a baton in his right hand, standing upon a pedestal on which is an inscription surrounded by a wreath supporting a crown.

Kent visited Rome in 1715 where he met Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlington who became his patron. Boyle encouraged Kent’s interest in architecture when they returned to London together and Kent soon started receiving commissions for buildings and furniture in the classical style. His most famous buildings include Holkham Hall, Norfolk, and the Horse Guards, Whitehall.

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