Portrait of Maria Theresa, queen of Hungary and Bohemia, on horseback
18th century
Medium
Watercolor on vellum
Dimensions
16 1/8 x 12 1/8 in. (41 x 30.8 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Mrs. William M. Haupt, from the collection of Mrs. James B. Haggin, 1965
Accession Number
65.251.3
Tags
Art Historical Context
Behold the commanding presence of Maria Theresa, Queen of Hungary and Bohemia (and Holy Roman Empress from 1740 to 1780), captured in this striking 18th-century French portrait on horseback. Rendered anonymously by a skilled artist of the French school, the depicts the queen amid a landscape dotted with trees, evoking her renowned equestrian prowess and authoritative demeanor. Subtle figures of men and women in the scene likely highlight her royal entourage, underscoring her role as a formidable leader during a turbulent era. Maria Theresa's reign was marked by the War of the Austrian Success...
About the Artist
Anonymous, French, 18th century · 1700–1800
The artist known as Anonymous, French, 18th century, represents a collective of unidentified talents active roughly between 1700 and 1800, a period of profound artistic evolution in France from the opulent Rococo to the austere dawn of Neoclassicism and Revolutionary fervor. Little is documented about their personal training or mentors, as their anonymity obscures individual biographies, though th...