A large and impressive royal Jubilee souvenir card, headed: “JUBILEE SOUVENIR” and titled beneath the image: “The Royal Circle at Windsor (Four Generations)” The elaborate composition places Queen Victoria (1819–1901) at its centre, surrounded by an extraordinary gathering of her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and their spouses – representing four generations of Queen Victoria's extended Royal Family. The composition contains 48 numbered royal figures. The reverse reproduces an outline key to the entire group, with each person individually numbered and corresponding to a detailed printed identification list beneath. Among those identified are Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, the future King Edward VII; the Princess of Wales; Princess Beatrice; the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh; the Duke and Duchess of Connaught; the Duchess of Albany; members of the Battenberg family; and numerous members of the Prussian and German royal families, together with many of Queen Victoria's grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Of particular interest, the composition also incorporates portraits of deceased members of the Royal Family, including Prince Albert, Queen Victoria's late husband, together with other deceased royal relatives. The result is therefore not simply a contemporary group portrait but an elaborate dynastic representation of Queen Victoria's extended family. The card vividly illustrates the extraordinary reach of Victoria's descendants throughout the European royal houses, which would contribute to her enduring reputation as the “Grandmother of Europe.” Published by Raphael Tuck & Sons, with the firm's London, Paris and New York imprint visible on the front. An especially decorative and historically appealing piece of Victorian royal ephemera, combining Queen Victoria, four generations of her dynasty, 48 individually identified royal figures, and a detailed identification key on the reverse.
Auction 01: Auction 01 – Historical Letters, Documents & Autographs — Melis Antiques & Art