Long regarded as a portrait of Charles VI, this remarkable drawing can in fact be securely identified as representing Frederick I of Prussia. Several converging iconographic clues leave little doubt. The saddle cloth bears the single-headed eagle together with the monogram FR (Friedericus Rex) an unmistakable emblem of the Prussian sovereign. Equally characteristic is Frederick’s distinctive mustache, rendered here with almost documentary precision.

The drawing can most plausibly be dated to the years following his coronation in 1701, a moment when images of the newly proclaimed king circulated widely across Europe. As suggested by Mr. Telesko, to whom we express our warm thanks, the present work was quite possibly conceived as a design for a printed poster celebrating the accession of Prussia’s first king.