Crown Princess Louise of Prussia and her Sister Frederica of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Johann Gottfried Schadow worked as a sculptor on many architectural projects in Berlin and was central in establishing the neoclassical tradition there. This unglazed ceramic, or biscuit, reproduces in reduced scale one of his most famous marble sculptures, which was commissioned in 1796 by King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Prussia. Typical of Schadow’s style, it joins classical references with naturalistic specificity. Presented as figures from the ancient past in their dress and hairstyles, the sisters also recall, through their poses, famous Roman sculptures of mythological siblings. At the same time, their facial features identify them unequivocally as the Prussian sisters portrayed by many contemporary artists. The composition’s popularity ensured its reproduction in casts such as this one throughout the nineteenth century.