Franz-Napoleon Heigel (Franco-German, 1813-1888)

Ludwig II (1845-1886), King of Bavaria 1864-1886, in the uniform of the Bavarian Regiment, wearing the breast-stars of the Royal Bavarian Orders of St Hubert and St George, the badge of the Royal Bavarian Military Order of Max-Joseph and the badge of the Order of Merit of the Bavarian Crown

Details

Franz-Napoleon Heigel (Franco-German, 1813-1888)
Ludwig II (1845-1886), King of Bavaria 1864-1886, in the uniform of the Bavarian Regiment, wearing the breast-stars of the Royal Bavarian Orders of St Hubert and St George, the badge of the Royal Bavarian Military Order of Max-Joseph and the badge of the Order of Merit of the Bavarian Crown
signed and dated 'F. N. Heigel / n. d. Natur, 1865.' (centre right)
watercolour on paper
13 1/8 x 9 1/8 in. (33.2 x 23 cm.)

Provenance

Kommerzienrat Heinrich Morgenstern, Fürth, Germany.
His forced sale at Rudolph Lepke, Berlin, 22 November 1938, lot 30.
Galerie Bassenge, Berlin, 7 June 1996, lot 5715 (10,000 DM).
Restituted to the heirs of Kommerzienrat Heinrich Morgenstern.

The present work is being offered for sale pursuant to an agreement between the consignor and the heirs of Heinrich Morgenstern. This resolves any dispute over ownership of the work and title will pass to the buyer.

Lot Essay

The sitter was the eldest son of Maximilian II of Bavaria (see lot 134) and Princess Marie of Prussia. An important patron of the arts, he supported the composer Richard Wagner and built numerous romantic castles. In 1886, he was deposed by his government on the grounds of mental insanity and his uncle Luitpold (1821-1912) acted as Prince Regent. This claim of mental instability has never been substantiated although it gained strength after the King's sudden death in the lake at Schloss Berg, a few days after his deposition.

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