Portret van Wilhelmina van Pruisen 1790 - 1819

This is Benjamin Samuel Bolomey's rendering of Wilhelmina van Pruisen made with etching. Encapsulated within a classical oval frame, she embodies 18th-century aristocratic ideals. But consider this seemingly simple frame—a motif that echoes through art history. From ancient Roman portrait busts to Renaissance medallions, the circular frame suggests completeness and containment. It marks her as a figure of significance, an icon preserved for posterity. The oval, though, also hints at something more. It is a symbol of the eternal, a nod to cycles of life and the passage of time. This form resurfaces in countless iterations across cultures, each time carrying echoes of its past. Think of Botticelli's circular compositions, or the halos encircling Byzantine Madonnas. These symbols tap into a collective memory, a subconscious recognition of enduring themes. In Bolomey's portrait, the frame not only celebrates Wilhelmina's status, it also subtly connects her to a lineage of power and beauty that transcends time.