|
At the end of the 17th century Louis XIV, the Sun King, set the tone for all courts in Europe. The decorative style which developed in his palace at Versailles became the model even for Willem III, the Dutch stadholder-king, the arch-rival of the French king.
Blommendael's portrait shows Willem III as a powerful sovereign, wearing the royal ermine cape and the chain of the Order of the Garter. the stadholder-king's clothes and his wig are in the French mode, and the whole style of this sculpture is based on French Baroque portrait sculpture.
|
