-
Allegorical Figures: Clemency, Prudence and Justice with Pallas, Heroic Poetry, Liberty, Discretion, History and Mercury (panel from Royal State Coach for George I)
Thornhill, James - Enlarge image
Allegorical Figures: Clemency, Prudence and Justice with Pallas, Heroic Poetry, Liberty, Discretion, History and Mercury (panel from Royal State Coach for George I)
- Object:
Panel
- Place of origin:
London, England (made)
- Date:
ca. 1718 (made)
- Artist/Maker:
Thornhill, James (Sir), born 1675 - died 1734 (artist)
- Materials and Techniques:
Oil on wooden panel, the thin panel mounted onto a thicker panel, and backed with canvas
- Credit Line:
Given by Miss Turner
- Museum number:
W.12-1944
- Gallery location:
In store
This panel, with its pair (W.12-1944) was painted by Sir James Thornhill as one of the two door panels from a state coach built for King George I in about 1718. Coaches were always a highly important emblem of the wealth and power of monarchs and in this case George I took the opportunity to add a strong statement about his intentions as king. He came to the throne in 1714, after the death of Queen Anne, and by 1718 had already had to face an uprising of the Jacobites, British supporters of the Stuart dynasty.
Thornhill painted the panel with figures representing the virtues of Clemency, Prudence and Justice supporting the royal arms. Below are gathered figures representing the Roman goddess Minerva (patron of learning and the arts) to the left, and the Roman god Mercury (the messenger of the gods, personifying eloquence and reason) to the right, with a group of seated women representing Liberty, Discretion and History. In the centre is a figure representing Heroic Poetry (holding up a scroll). We know the significance of the figures in part because of the emblems they carry but also because they are identified in an inscription on a preliminary drawing, which is also in the V&A collections (D.756-1886).
Thornhill was appointed History Painter to George I in 1718 and Sergeant Painter (a more lucrative post) in 1720. He turned his decorative talents to ceilings, walls and theatrical scenery, as well as to coach panels.
