James II coronation slide

A Stuart crystal slide to commemorate the coronation of King James II of England [also James VII of Scotland] on 6th February 1685. James, a Catholic, only ruled for three years, so jewels depicting him are rare. James’s religious beliefs made him unpopular. On June 10, 1688, after 15 years of miscarriages and stillbirths, James’s wife Mary of Modena finally gave birth to a male heir, which led to the so-called ‘warming pan scandal’. The boy was the heir to the throne and his birth was celebrated by many in the country, but others were less pleased with the new arrival, seeing him as ushering in the prospect of a permanent Catholic dynasty in Britain. The King’s Protestant daughters from his first marriage were sceptical that Mary had actually given birth at all and intimated that a male infant had been smuggled in, in a warming pan. Further suspicion arose from the fact that the witnesses to the birth claimed they had turned their backs to protect the Queen’s modesty and had not seen anything. James was deposed in the Glorious Revolution in 1688. Sceptics remembered unfortunate omens at his coronation – his crown appeared to be in danger of toppling off and his canopy was torn during his procession. James fled to France where he spent the remainder of his life under the protection of his cousin and Catholic ally, Louis XIV.
This watercolour portrait of the monarch depicts him in full wig, armour and lace jabot, wearing the blue sash of the Order of the Garter, after a portrait by Godfrey Kneller. Two cherubs hover above holding aloft a crown. The iconography suggests that the divine right of kings was indeed divine, granted by God. The portrait is set under faceted rock crystal and set to a high carat gold slide. The slide measures one inch by 3/4 an inch and is in immaculate, original condition.

£6000