Princess Philippine was the daughter of Frederick William I of Prussia and Sophie Dorothea of Hanover, George II’s sister. In 1733 she married Charles, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (1713-80) and the couple had many children. The Duchess was also a writer, intellectual hostess and significant figure in the German Enlightenment.

This is a version of a composition attributed to Antoine Pesne (another version is in the Ringling Museum, Sarasota), dated to the early 1740s. The sitter appears full-length, wearing a pink dress with floral motifs and holding to her breast a posy of flowers with her left hand; fur-lined cloak and crown, formal gardens out of window.