The Italian sculptor Canonica received commissions from European royalty including the British royal family. The sculptor likewise worked for the Russian imperial family making busts of Alexandra Feodorovna and her son the Tsesarevich Alexei. This bronze of Nicholas II was sent by the Emperor and Empress to their cousin, King George V for Christmas 1912, who wrote in acknowledgement ‘I thank you both a thousand times’.

Sent as a gift to King George V by Emperor Nicholas II, 1912