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Attributed to Flemish School, 17th century

A Young Boy c. 1620

Oil on canvas | 88.7 x 58.4 cm (sight) | RCIN 401179

  • A full-length portrait of a red-haired young boy, facing the spectator, standing on a patterned carpet holding a posy of flowers in his right hand; he wears a green jacket with an orange floral pattern fastened by red buttons and a bow.

    During this period young children of both sexes wore ‘coats’ with skirts, which can make differentiating between boys and girls in portraits difficult. Small clues however can be revealing – the cut of the doublet seen here echoes fashionable styles for men at this date, suggesting that this painting portrays a boy. The careful arrangement of the pomegranate patterned fabric across the doublet and skirt would have required excess material and been expensive. The over-large scale of the pattern suggests it may have been remade from adult clothing.

    Provenance

    First recorded in the Royal Collection during the reign of Queen Elizabeth II

  • Medium and techniques

    Oil on canvas

    Measurements

    88.7 x 58.4 cm (sight)

  • Category
    Object type(s)
  • Other number(s)
    Alternative title(s)

    Henry, Prince of Wales (1594-1612), previously identified as

    A child of Frederick V, King of Bohemia, previously identified as