After the death of his uncle, the stadholder-king, in 1702 he was Prince of Orange and heir to the Nassau possessions. As the intended ruler he is dressed in a military uniform. He holds a commander’s staff in one hand; the other rests on his hip. His hair is dressed in the very latest fashion, as are his mother’s and sisters’ – long powdered locks for men and upswept hair with jewels for ladies.
long powdered locks and upswept hair with jewels
Objects
The 1699 group portrait shows Henriette Amalia of Anhalt-Dessau surrounded by her children. In the group portrait Henriette Amalia presents her son John William Friso as the successor.
Their dress is a mixture of authentic costume elements and imaginary pseudo-classical draperies. The gowns of the eldest sisters and the princess are fairly contemporary, but the youngest girls’ garments are invented and timeless. It is interesting that the girls are holding up jewellery boxes, strings of pearls and a gold medallion. Perhaps this symbolic display of wealth was designed to strengthen their position in the marriage market. However Henriette Amelia focused wholly on the marriage of the son and heir and as a result almost all her daughters remained unmarried.