Man in armour, possibly James II when Duke of York thumbnail 1
Not currently on display at the V&A

Man in armour, possibly James II when Duke of York

Statuette
ca. 1660 (made)
Artist/Maker
Unknown
Place of origin
England (made)
Netherlands (made)

This boxwood statuette is made in ca. 1660 probably by a Netherlandish artist, who was active Britain. The naval medallion and sea-horses carved round the base suggest this is a portrait of a naval dignitary. The figure perhaps represents James II when Duke of York at the time of his appointment as Lord High Admiral of the Fleet.

Object details

Categories
Royalty
Sculpture
Object type
Statuette
TitleMan in armour, possibly James II when Duke of York (named collection)
Materials and techniques
Boxwood
Boxwood
Brief description
Statuette, boxwood, Man in armour, possibly James II when Duke of York, probably by a Netherlandish artist, perhaps active in Britain, ca. 1660
Physical description
Statuette, boxwood, a man in armour. A man wearing a long curling wig, standing holding a sword in his right hand an a roll in his left. He wears a voluminous mantle over plate armour. On the base are sea-horses back to back and a minutely carved naval scene.
Dimensions
  • Height: 38.5cm
Credit line
Presented by Art Fund
Object history
In the Henry Oppenheimer collection and sold on the second day's sale of the collection held at Christie's, London on 16th July 1936, lot 206. Purchased for £162 15s by the National Art-Collections Fund and given to the Museum.
Subjects depicted
Armour
Sea-Horses
James II, Duke of York
Summary
This boxwood statuette is made in ca. 1660 probably by a Netherlandish artist, who was active Britain. The naval medallion and sea-horses carved round the base suggest this is a portrait of a naval dignitary. The figure perhaps represents James II when Duke of York at the time of his appointment as Lord High Admiral of the Fleet.
Bibliographic references
  • Trusted, Marjorie, ed. The Making of Sculpture. The Materials and Techniques of European Sculpture.London. 2007, p.133. pl. 247
  • Bilbey, Diane with Trusted, Marjorie. British Sculpture 1470 to 2000. A Concise Catalogue of the Collection at the Victoria and Albert Museum. London: V& A Publications, 2002. pp. 36. cat. no. 57
  • Review [1911-1938], Victoria & Albert Museum. Review of the Principal Acquisitions during the Year, London, 1936, pp. 5-6, p. 2 (a)
Collection
Sculpture Collection
Accession number
A.17-1936

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Record createdJune 24, 2009
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O310971/man-in-armour-possibly-james-statuette-unknown/
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