King Louis XVI (1774-1792)
Relief
1796 (made)
1796 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This portrait relief depicts Louis XVI, King of France and Navarre from 1774 until 1792. Arrested during the Revolution he was tried and executed by guillotine on 21st January 1793.
During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, low relief portraits in wax became popular in Britain and they were often exhibited at the Royal Academy, the Society of Artists and elsewhere. Waxes were used in a similar way to prints and medals, in order to disseminate the image of the sitter, or, like miniature paintings or silhouettes as portable mementoes.
The finishing on this portrait is astoundingly detailed. The process of making a portrait in wax would begin with a model in plasticine or soft wax which would be worked using ivory or wooden tools in much the same way as a model in clay. A plaster mould would then be made and molten wax poured into it. The relief would be hand-finished by the artist.
This portrait is the work of Edward Coffin, an English Sculptor who exhibited wax portraits at the Royal Academy from 1783 to 1803.
During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, low relief portraits in wax became popular in Britain and they were often exhibited at the Royal Academy, the Society of Artists and elsewhere. Waxes were used in a similar way to prints and medals, in order to disseminate the image of the sitter, or, like miniature paintings or silhouettes as portable mementoes.
The finishing on this portrait is astoundingly detailed. The process of making a portrait in wax would begin with a model in plasticine or soft wax which would be worked using ivory or wooden tools in much the same way as a model in clay. A plaster mould would then be made and molten wax poured into it. The relief would be hand-finished by the artist.
This portrait is the work of Edward Coffin, an English Sculptor who exhibited wax portraits at the Royal Academy from 1783 to 1803.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | King Louis XVI (1774-1792) |
| Materials and techniques | Wax |
| Brief description | Relief, Louis XVI, wax, by Edmund Coffin, English, 1796 |
| Physical description | Wax relief in octagonal frame. Profile to the left, wearing the Star of the Order of the Garter. |
| Marks and inscriptions | Signed and dated. |
| Credit line | Rupert Gunnis Bequest |
| Object history | Bequeathed by Rupert Gunnis Esq. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | This portrait relief depicts Louis XVI, King of France and Navarre from 1774 until 1792. Arrested during the Revolution he was tried and executed by guillotine on 21st January 1793. During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, low relief portraits in wax became popular in Britain and they were often exhibited at the Royal Academy, the Society of Artists and elsewhere. Waxes were used in a similar way to prints and medals, in order to disseminate the image of the sitter, or, like miniature paintings or silhouettes as portable mementoes. The finishing on this portrait is astoundingly detailed. The process of making a portrait in wax would begin with a model in plasticine or soft wax which would be worked using ivory or wooden tools in much the same way as a model in clay. A plaster mould would then be made and molten wax poured into it. The relief would be hand-finished by the artist. This portrait is the work of Edward Coffin, an English Sculptor who exhibited wax portraits at the Royal Academy from 1783 to 1803. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | A.108-1965 |
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| Record created | March 17, 2004 |
| Record URL |
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