Dorothy Wilding, 1928 photograph of Prince George, Duke of Kent

Signed by both Dorothy Wilding and Prince George

Author

Publisher

Printing Details

This is a framed photograph of Prince George, Duke of Kent, taken c1928 by Dorothy Wilding.

The frame measures 20.5 × 13.5cm, and is made of leather with a gilt margin around the opening. It was made by Walter Jones of Sloane Street, and has a stand to the rear. The photograph is a small portrait, measuring 8.5 × 6.5cm, and is mounted on thin tissue, a small piece of black paper behind that and then onto thick cream card. The frame is not glazed but has the original clear vinyl insert in place of the glass (this is not attached to the image).

Prince George (1902–1942) was the fourth son of King George V. He served in the Royal Navy until 1929, and this photograph is signed by him firstly to the image and where he has also dated 1928, and secondly to the thick paper on which the photograph is mounted (in blue ink, and has simply signed George). The photograph shows him in his naval officer's uniform. He married his second cousin, Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark, in 1934 but nevertheless enjoyed a colourful private life. In August 1942 he became the first member of the Royal Family to be killed on active service in 450 years, when the Short Sunderland flying boat he was in with 14 others (he was serving in the RAF at this point) crashed on Eagle's Rock, a hillside near Dunbeath, Caithness, Scotland. All but one were killed.

Dorothy Wilding was a professional portrait photographer, best known for her portraits of the Royal Family, and for her studies of actors and celebrities which fused glamour with modernist elegance. She has signed in pencil to the this tissue on which the photograph is mounted.

Condition

The photograph is in good condition for age, there are a few spots of foxing and light tanning but it remains an attractive piece. The frame has some rubbing to the edges and the stand at the rear is nearly detached. The base of the stand is stamped in gilt by the manufacturer (Walter Jones).

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