Book Description

Anglophiles and students of portraiture will find that The Royal Portrait fills a surprising void in the literature, as Scott (Royal Collection) presents for the first time a survey of British portraits housed in the various venues of the Royal Collection. The broad scope ranges from Richard II (the first British king portrayed) to Queen Elizabeth II; the latter monarch, along with Queen Victoria, is the subject of an independent chapter, while other chapters focus on images of royals from a particular dynastic house, such as the Stuart and the Hanoverian. Through an interesting selection of diverse media and formats employed in different periods, Scott explores the central question of "what constitutes a royal portrait?" The answers are multifaceted and contingent on such factors as patronage, function, royal control, and artistic intention; nevertheless symbolic visual conventions can still be traced in the representations of British monarchs over the centuries. This is a clearly written, well-illustrated survey; for more in-depth analyses of particular works one will need to turn to specialized sources, e.g., D. Howarth's Images of Rule (1997). Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through researchers/faculty; general readers. General Readers; Lower-division Undergraduates; Upper-division Undergraduates; Graduate Students; Researchers/Faculty. Reviewed by J. K. Dabbs.