Currently not on view
The Escape of Queen Matilda (Maud) from Oxford Castle,
ca. 1784
John Flaxman, 1755–1826; born York, England; died London, England
x1993-94
The British sculptor and illustrator John Flaxman was fascinated with early English history. According to legend, in the winter of 1142, Princess Matilda (also known as Empress Maud), the daughter of King Henry I and sole legitimate heir to the English throne, had been besieged in Oxford Castle by her French-born cousin, who believed that a woman could not rule. Fleeing one December night across the frozen River Thames, the Empress escaped undetected against the snow and ice by wearing only her white nightdress. Following her cousin’s death in 1154 the crown passed to Matilda’s eldest son, who became King Henry II, the first of the Plantagenet kings to rule England.
Information
Title
The Escape of Queen Matilda (Maud) from Oxford Castle
Dates
ca. 1784
Maker
Medium
Pen and black and brown ink with grey wash over graphite
Dimensions
sheet: 38.3 x 48.0 cm (15 1/16 x 18 7/8 in.)
mount: 43.5 x 53.3 cm
Credit Line
Museum purchase, Surdna Fund
Object Number
x1993-94
Inscription
in ink lower right: The Empress Maud | escape from Oxford | castle
Marks/Labels/Seals
watermark: fleur-de-lis in decorative cartouche
Culture
Type
Materials
Subject
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Old master drawings from the Woodner collection: the property of Dian and Andrea Woodner, the Ian Woodner family collection and the Shipley Corporation; Tuesday, 7 July 1992, (London: Christie, Manson & Woods, 1992).
- "Acquisitions of the Art Museum 1993", Record of the Art Museum, Princeton University 53, no. 1 (1994): p. 46-95., p. 55 (illus.)
