Carlo Marochetti
Bust of Albert, Prince Consort
Lot Closed
July 2, 03:16 PM GMT
Estimate
5,000 - 7,000 GBP
Lot Details
Description
Carlo Marochetti
Italian
1805 - 1868
Bust of Albert, Prince Consort
with an old handwritten note to the underside inscribed in ink: This little bronze bust of the late Prince Albert was on the writing table of the Queen at Balmoral the month of May 1862 / Her Majesty took it up & said "this was remarkably like [..?] and handed it to me, saying "Keep it in Remembrance!" / He was a good friend to me. / Edward Henry Corbould, R.I.,
and accompanied by a copy of the Holy Bible, inscribed in ink: Annie Middleton Corbould. / from her affectionate Husband / Edward Henry Corbould / Oct 16th 1863
bronze, dark brown patina
21cm., 8¼in.
(According to the handwritten note inserted into the interior:)
Queen Victoria (r. 1837-1901), Balmoral Castle;
By whom gifted to Edward Henry Corbould, R.I. (1815-1905), London;
Private collection, United Kingdom
Baron Carlo Marochetti completed a portrait bust of Prince Albert in marble in 1859 (Royal Collection, inv. no. RCIN 31628). It was his first major Royal commission, and its success led to a career-defining relationship with the Royal family. Reductions of the model were produced in both bronze and Parian ware.
According to the handwritten note in its interior, the present bronze was formerly placed on Queen Victoria's writing desk at Balmoral and gifted by the monarch in 1862 to the painter Edward Henry Corbould. Throughout his career, Corbould enjoyed the patronage of Victoria and Albert, and in 1851 he was appointed instructor of historical painting to the Royal Family.
