Frame of Maria Christina of Austria
Ca. 1887. Cast, Wash-gilding.Room 062B
This gilt-bronze frame was signed in 1887 – the year the painting was completed – by “H. Nelson”, i.e. the sculptor Henri-Alphonse Nelson. Notable for its profuse floral decoration, it is worked even on the reverse and bears an inscription indicating its weight, 25 kg. The queen’s initials can be discerned in the upper crest, interwoven among the leaves and flowers, while the decoration of the lower moulding features the insignia of the Order of Queen Maria Luisa, which is also depicted in the portrait.
