Portret van Karel VI, Rooms-Duits keizer 1711 - 1733

This is Martin Bernigeroth’s portrait of Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor, made in the early 18th century. Bernigeroth, active in the courts of central Europe, captured the Habsburg emperor amidst elaborate symbols of power. Consider the weight of inherited identity: Charles embodies centuries of dynastic ambition and geopolitical strategy. Crowned by an oversized wig, itself a symbol of status, Charles is flanked by an eagle and a lion, regal emblems of empire. Note the Latin inscription, “Dilata locum tentorii tui et ad laevam penetrabis,” a divine decree to expand his territory. How might Charles have perceived his own identity, shaped by ancestral expectations and the demands of leadership? Bernigeroth's print echoes conventional displays of power. And yet, the human element persists. We see in Charles’s gaze the weight of his inherited position. This image operates at the intersection of personal identity and political representation.