Princess Alexandra of Bavaria
after a painting of Stieler (1845) for the Galery of Beauties

Princess Alexandra Amalie of Bavaria (26 August 1826 – 21 September 1875)
was a member of the House of Wittelsbach and devoted her life to literature.
Alexandra never married, and instead was appointed abbess of the Royal Chapter
for Ladies of Saint Anne in Munich and Würzburg; this was a religious community
specifically for noble ladies. In the 1850s Prince Louis Lucien Bonaparte asked
King Ludwig for Alexandra's hand in marriage, but he was divorced from his wife,
and Ludwig refused, using as an excuse Alexandra's delicate health.

In 1852 Alexandra began a literary career: Weihnachtsrosen (Christmas roses, 1852. 1853:
Souvenirs, pensées et essais (Memories, thoughts and essays). In 1856: Feldblumen (Field flowers).
In 1858 appeared Phantasie- und Lebensbilder (Daydreams and biographical sketches).
In 1862 a loose translation into German of some of the romances of Eugenie Foa. 1863:
Thautropfen (Dewdrops).
In 1870: Das Kindertheater (The children's theatre) and Der erste des Monats
(The first of the month). In 1873: Maiglöckchen (Lilies of the valley).

Notwithstanding her literary accomplishments, Alexandra suffered from a number of psychological
eccentricities, including a fixation with cleanliness as well as wearing only white clothes.
In her early twenties, she notably developed a delusion that as a child she had swallowed
a grand piano made of glass, which remained inside her.

painting: waterbased on an ivory chip
frame: ivory chips with brass rim
preservation painting: excellent
preservation frame: excellent
dimensions: 179 x 129 mm
inner dimensions ring: 50 x 60 mm
thick: 12 mm
convex glass
suspension: ornamented triangle





stock number 779