Tegeltableau met portret prins Willem IV te paard, met opschrift: WILLEM KAREL HENDRIK FRISO PRINS VAN ORANIE 1760 - 1795

This tile tableau portraying Prince William IV on horseback was created by an anonymous artist. The piece offers us a window into the veneration of leadership and the performance of power in the Dutch Republic. Imagery of the Prince on horseback speaks to the complex interplay of gender, power, and identity. In the tableau, William IV is presented as a powerful, masculine figure. This depiction reinforces traditional gender roles and the association of men with leadership. Simultaneously, the choice of a tile tableau, a domestic item, suggests an attempt to bring the Prince and his authority into the home, creating a more intimate relationship between ruler and subject. This work invites us to reflect on the ways in which images of leadership are constructed and consumed, and how they shape our understanding of power and identity. It reminds us that even seemingly straightforward depictions can be rich with social and political meaning.