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The young lady which is depicted here (she is one of the German royalties - see our image nr.7 for another one of her portraits, in which she is shown with a princely crown; see also her ermine cloak and bejeweled hair-style) bears the insignia of the Russian Ladies Order of St. Catherine of the 1st Class (she is a so-called "Lady of Grand Cross" (for comparison, see our image nr.12)) - note the sash over her right shoulder and the breast star; due to this portrait's being only half-length, we are unable to see the (obligatory) 1st class badge affixed onto the sash at hip height. Her gown and hair-style provide the approximate date of this portrait's execution - ca. 1775. Her young visual age allows us to believe that she received the Order of St. Catherine during either the reign of Tsar Peter III, or that of his widow and successor, Empress Catherine II (The Great), who, as it is known, ruled Russia from 1762.

It was not too difficult to discover the identity of this young lady. In total, both Peter III and (later) Catherine II awarded forty-six women with the Grand Cross of the Order of St. Catherine: aristocratic ladies from Russia and their female associates from foreign ruling houses. The sitter's non-Russian princely crown led us to search only among those in the latter group. Having studied the whole list (it is available on the Web) we found only one person, who would indisputably share both the physiognomic features and the corresponding young age with "our" sitter - Friederike Sophie Wilhelmine, Princess of Prussia (see our comparison images nr.8-10). In 1775, she was 24 years old.

Friederike Sophie Wilhelmine, Princess of Prussia was born on August 7, 1751 in Berlin as the only daughter of Prince August Wilhelm of Prussia (1722-1758) and his wife Luise Amalie of Brunswick-Wolfenbuettel (who also happened to be the sister of King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Prussia).

On October 4, 1767, in Berlin, she married Prince Wilhelm V of Orange, state holder of the Netherlands (1748-1806). They had four children (three of them surviving). Wilhelmine became The Lady of Grand Cross of St. Catherine Order in 1773 ("our" portrait was made (due to her visual young age) either just or very soon after this date). Our image nr.11 offers Wilhelmine's extensive biography.

Acquired in December of 2015, in Berlin antique trade ("Noble Lady"), this portrait was made - as we strongly believe - by one of Prussian court artists working in Berlin in the 1770s.

Condition: good for its age; lined in the early 19th century

Creation Year:  ca 1775

Measurements: UNFRAMED: 54,0x43,5cm/21,3x17,1in FRAMED: 67,7x58,1cm/26,7x22,9inc

Object Type: Framed oil painting

Style: Old Master paintings

Technique: oil on canvas

Inscription: -