George IV, King of Great Britain,
as Prince of Wales
by William Grimaldi, signed & dated 1789,
after the portrait by Sir Joshua Reynolds.

George IV (1762-1830) was described by the Duke of Wellington as "the most extraordinary compound of talent, wit, buffoonery, obstinacy and good feeling - in short a medley of the most opposite qualities, with a great preponderance of good..."

This miniature was taken from the 1786-87 portrait by Sir Joshua Reynolds, exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1787. It is interesting to note, that in typical fashion for the Prince, the portrait remained unpaid in 1790. The portrait is now in the collection of the Duke of Norfolk, Arundel Castle.

Set in a gilt metal locket frame with glazed reverse revealing Grimaldi's inscription and signature: Prince of Wales/ William Grimaldi/ Enamel painter to the Prince/ and/ Miniature Painter to His/ Royal Highness Duke of York/ **Street.James'/ London 1789. Additionally, the miniature retains the 1912 Brussels Exhibition label.

4 1/8 inches (10.4 cm) high.

William Grimaldi, eighth Marquess Grimaldi (1751-1830), served as miniature painter to George III, George IV and the Duke and Duchess of York. The years 1771-1783, were spent working in Paris. That time strongly influenced Grimaldi's work in England. He exhibited at the Royal Academy from 1786-1830. Examples of his work may be seen in the Victoria & Albert Museum and the Wallace Collection. There are twelve miniatures by Grimaldi in the collection of the Her Majesty, the Queen, all copies of portraits by Reynolds, Hoppner, Beechey, and Lawrence, the majority commissioned by the Prince of Wales.

Provenance:
   By descent in the Grimaldi family to Margaret Orton
   Christie's, 23 May, 1989, lot 125

Exhibited:
   Brussels, International Exhibition of Miniatures, 1912
   London, King's College, 1857
   London, Ironmonger's Company, Fine Art Exhibition, 1861

Literature:
    The Athenaeum, 11 May, 1861
   Grimaldi, Alexander Beaufort, A Catalogue of the Works of William Grimaldi, 1873, no. 31.

See:
   Mannings, Sir Joshua Reynolds, A Complete Catalogue of His Paintings, discussed vol I, pgs 215 & 217, illustrated, vol. II, pg. 557, pl. 1496.