A visit to an exhibition is a must on any visit to London, and this time we chose to see the 'Charles II: Art & Power' exhibition in the Queen’s Gallery at Buckingham Palace.
The gallery is a lovely space, with an excellent audioguide and some of the most stylish toilets in London!
Charles II was restored to the throne in 1660 marking the end of the republican rule in England, during which time the jewels and regaliar of the monarchy had been melted down. So, Charles decided to bring all the trappings of monarchy back, thus giving work to many craftsmen of the time.
In the display of gold plate below, I was intrigued to see some pieces were missing with a sign indicating that they had been removed for use at Windsor Castle over Christmas! How the other half live???
Everything about this exhibition was flamboyant, even down to the shoes which Charles wore for his portrait and the decorations on the Christmas tree at the entrance.
Click here to return to Christmas 2017 in the UK.
Click here to return to Helen Gray’s home page.