Prince Albert by Baron Carlo Marochetti (1805-1867). 1849. Gilt bronze. (The dimensions of the marble original, including the socle, are 74.5 x 49.0 x 29.3 cm.). © Brighton Museum and Art Gallery, accession no. FA300003. On 3 July 1848, Queen Victoria wrote in her journal, "Marochetti is making a beautiful bust of dear Albert." This seems to be a gilded casting of the marble bust in the Royal Collection, "the first of fifteen works acquired or commissioned" from Marochetti ("Baron Carlo Marochetti"). It was the original marble version, therefore, that brought him the patronage of the British royal family soon after his arrival in England. [Click on the images for larger pictures.]

After the bust was completed in marble in 1849, "it was subsequently reproduced in miniature, both in bronze and in Minton's Parian ware" ("Baron Carlo Marochetti"). Later, however, William Theed's bust of 1862 was more widely known, especially as it was used in photographs of the royal family, as a substitute for the much-mourned paterfamilias. Theed's may have been the better likeness, but it would also have been more natural for his family to remember the prince as he was at the time of his death, rather than in earlier manhood.

This version is very handsome, though, and reminiscent (in the set of the head as well as its gilding) of the resplendent Albert modelled by John Henry Foley for the Albert Memorial.

Related Material

Images from Art UK, available to be shared and re-used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike licence (CC BY-SA). Commentary by Jacqueline Banerjee, 2020.

Bibliography

"Baron Carlo Marochetti (1805-67): Prince Albert 1849." Royal Collection Trust. Web. 22 April 2020.

Queen Victoria's Journals. Web. 22 April 2020.


Created 22 April 2020