The recently widowed Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, dressed for the coronation of her son, Tsar Nicholas II, in 1896.
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| A rare unretouched photograph of the Dowager Empress at forty-eight. |
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| And then retouched.... |
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| Detail of one of the versions of the below painting. |
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The Coronation of Nicholas II, by Laurits Tuxen, 1898. The painting captures the moment in the ceremony
when a shaft of light dramatically struck the crown of the Dowager Empress. |
Her sister, Queen Alexandra, dressed for the coronation of her husband, Edward VII, and her own, in 1902.
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| An unretouched photograph of Queen Alexandra at fifty-seven. |
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| And heavily retouched.... |
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| The Crowning of Queen Alexandra, by Laurits Tuxen, 1904. |
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Queen Alexandra in her coronation gown and robes, by Sir Luke Fildes, 1905. (The artist has added the Garter riband and badge,
which the queen did not wear during the coronation.) |
19th century photoshop!
ReplyDeleteIndeed! It's amazing how soon it was after they invented photography, that they invented retouching. Amazing but, considering human nature, I guess not too surprising. : )
DeleteI feel like a dolt not to have thought about this before. I don't think I have ever seen a comparison like this to suggest the reality behind the facade. Truth and beauty on your site as always.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much! : )
DeleteI am very much pleased with the post. I want to thank you for this great article. I enjoyed every little bit part of it and I will be waiting for the new updates.
ReplyDeleteThank you very much!
DeleteNot everyone can pull off wearing a fringe tiara as a belt!
ReplyDeleteHaha! Indeed not! : )
DeleteI’m curious as to what tiara the belt is, and how they managed the extensions either side, were they in diamonds or paste, or off yet another gem?
ReplyDeleteWas the belt ever photographed again, or written about, does it still exist in the mythical jewellery vaults under Buckingham Palace, first time I have ever seen it accounted for, in book, photo or blog! So great spot!
The British royal family has several "fringe" tiaras. The one in question is Queen Adelaide's Fringe, and was made in 1831 for William IV's consort. She wore it as a necklace; it's quite wide in circumference, following the style of the day. Its next owner, Queen Victoria, made it adaptable so it could be worn as a tiara. Both Queen Alexandra and Queen Mary had their own, more impressive, fringe tiaras made. But the late Queen Mother wore is as a necklace quite frequently. It is designated as a crown heirloom, and has been back in the possession of the current queen since her mother's death but, apparently, she's never worn it.
DeleteIn the coronation toilette of Queen Alexandra it's likely that what we see is all there was; the piece is at least that long, but maybe not long enough to meet in the middle in the back. As far as I know, there are no images of her without the coronation robes that concealed the back of her. But Queen Alexandra was famous for mixing paste jewels among the real, so it's possible she added a bit more of something to make it go all the way round...?