Artwork Page for The Life of Buckingham

Details / Information for The Life of Buckingham

The Life of Buckingham

c. 1855

Augustus Leopold Egg

(British, 1816-c. 1863)
Culture
England, 19th century, Victorian
Medium
oil on board
Measurements
Framed: 54.1 x 64.5 x 10.2 cm (21 5/16 x 25 3/8 x 4 in.); Unframed: 30.5 x 40.5 cm (12 x 15 15/16 in.)
Credit Line
Norman O. Stone and Ella A. Stone Memorial Fund 2014.373
Public Domain
You can copy, modify, and distribute this work, all without asking permission. Learn more about CMA's Open Access Initiative.
Location
203B British Painting and Decorative Arts
Print

Description


Augustus Leopold Egg’s The Life of Buckingham depicts a fictional moment in the debauched, roguish life of George Villiers (1628–1687), 2nd Duke of Buckingham (seated at the center, wearing white). Although the scene is invented,
the merrymakers and courtesans depicted around the table (among them King Charles II, to Buckingham’s right) were characters the duke would have personally known and were familiar to Victorian audiences who delighted in the
cautionary tale of excess.
A horizontally oriented oil painting depicts twelve figures with light skin tones crowded around a table in a dark room. At the center, Buckingham sits wearing a white garment and blue sash. To our left, a man in a red suit stands, raising a glass. To our right, another figure reaches toward one of two ornate gold mirrors flanking a large central window. Outside, a full moon shines in a dark night sky.

The Life of Buckingham

c. 1855

Augustus Leopold Egg

(British, 1816-c. 1863)
England, 19th century, Victorian

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