Portret van Filips de Schone 1847 - 1849

Jan Frederik Christiaan Reckleben made this print of Filips de Schone, or Philip the Handsome, sometime in the 19th century. The image is a portrait of a nobleman dressed in armor and wearing a crown and lavish fur robes. Reckleben’s print participates in the 19th-century fashion for Romanticism, which looked to the medieval period as a source of intense emotion and drama. The work evokes the kind of art that might be found in the palaces and state buildings of the Dutch monarchy, reinforcing their power and grandeur. Although the artist lived and worked in the Netherlands, the image may also reflect the political turmoil in Europe at the time, with different factions vying for power and legitimacy. This print could have been used to promote a particular political cause or to celebrate a specific historical figure. To fully understand the meaning of this artwork, it is essential to investigate the visual codes, cultural references, and historical associations that Reckleben employed.