Artwork
Queen Emma, Princess of Waldeck-Pyrmont, Widow of King William III
Queen Emma, Princess of Waldeck-Pyrmont, Widow of King William III is an oil painting by the Impressionist artist Jan Veth. It dates from 1918 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
Rendered in oil on canvas, the painting measures 99 cm by 70 cm and is part of the Rijksmuseum's collection in Amsterdam.
The portrait shows Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont as a dignified widow, her composed posture and direct gaze conveying resilience and regal dignity after the loss of her husband, King William III. The work emphasizes her status within the Dutch royal lineage through formal attire and the intimate yet authoritative rendering characteristic of early twentieth-century portraiture. Rendered in oil on canvas, the painting measures 99 cm by 70 cm and is part of the Rijksmuseum's collection in Amsterdam.
Symbolically, the piece underscores themes of mourning and continuity within the royal family, using traditional iconographic elements to affirm her enduring role as matriarch.
The portrait was painted by Jan Veth in 1918 and is catalogued in the Rijksmuseum's holdings.
Technique & Style
The portrait is executed in oil paint on canvas, a standard combination for Jan Veth's painted portraits of this period. The canvas support measures 99 cm in height by 70 cm in width, giving the work a vertical orientation suited to a half- or three-quarter-length seated figure of a sitter such as Queen Emma. Classified simply as a painting and a portrait, the work is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
Stylistically, the medium and support are consistent with Veth's late-career practice of producing dignified, carefully modelled oil portraits of Dutch royalty and society figures. No further details of handling, surface condition, or specific stylistic descriptors are documented in the available sources.
History & Provenance
Jan Veth executed the oil-on-canvas portrait of Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont in 1918. The work was created as a formal depiction of the Princess of Waldeck-Pyrmont and widow of King William III. Following its completion, the painting entered the collection of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. The finished piece measures 99 cm in height and 70 cm in width.
Queen Emma, Princess of Waldeck-Pyrmont, Widow of King William III is an oil portrait painted in 1918 by Dutch artist Jan Veth. The work measures 99 cm by 70 cm and is part of the Rijksmuseum's collection in Amsterdam. It has been exhibited in the Rijksmuseum's Dutch Golden Age gallery as part of displays focusing on royal portraiture in the Netherlands.
Overview
Jan Veth’s 1918 oil portrait presents Emma of Waldeck‑Pyrmont, later queen consort of the Netherlands as the second wife of King William III. Executed in a loose, painterly manner, the work is part of the Rijksmuseum’s collection in Amsterdam.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Jan Pieter Veth (18 May 1864, Dordrecht – 1 July 1925, Amsterdam) was a Dutch painter, poet, art critic and university lecturer.
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