A pair of unframed oval ivory relief profile portraits of Anne, Princess Royal, daughter of George II, facing to the right and her husband, William, Prince of Orange facing to the left.

This pair of plaques was presumably made to commemorate the wedding of Princess Anne and William of Orange in 1734. The source is a double oval portrait of the royal couple after Philippe Mercier (1689-1760), which was widely circulated in a number of printed impressions in both Paris and London.

Gaspar van der Hagen, a Flemish artist, was an assistant to the sculptor, John Michael Rysbrack (1694-1770). In 1747 Vertue noted ‘Mr Vander Hagen. Sculptor works for Mr Rysbrack. has done several heads portraits in Ivory.—very well. but not meeting with propper encouragement did not continue’. The only known work by van der Hagen is a marble relief of Hercules (Yale Center for British Art, B 2003.6). Some ivories have been attributed to him, however, on the basis of Vertue’s remarks and a comparison with Rysbrack’s style. These include a number of profile plaques, among them one of George II, and a small bust of William, Duke of Cumberland (V&A Museum, London).

The Picture Closet at Kensington contained several ivory relief carvings including a number of bacchanalian scenes and two portrait profiles, although Vertue does not list the sitters.

Text adapted from The First Georgians; Art and Monarchy 1714 - 1760, London, 2014.