Newly attributed portrait by Lucas Cranach the Elder goes on display at Windsor Castle
The painting Portrait of a Lady and her Son, c.1510–40, recently discovered to be by the German master Lucas Cranach the Elder (1472–1553) and his workshop is on public display at Windsor Castle from today. The painting was a Christmas gift from Queen Victoria to Prince Albert in 1840 and is part of the Royal Collection. The double portrait shows an unidentified consort of a Prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire and her son, their hands clasped together. Although acquired by Queen Victoria as a work by the Renaissance artist, by the early 20th century the painting was considered to be the work of Franz Wolfgang Rohrich (1787–1834). The composition has an intimacy which was thought to have been Rohrich’s invention and uncharacteristic of Cranach’s style. Rohrich was a prolific imitator of Cranach and produced over 40 versions of this portrait. He sold them as original works by Cranach, and they can be foun