Queen Victoria was very much in love with her husband, Prince Albert, and, following their marriage, she commissioned countless paintings, sculptures and photographs of his cherished image. This marble bust was commissioned by the Queen in 1840, shortly after their marriage. Edward Hodges Baily, the sculptor, struggled to finish the bust before it was to be shown at the Royal Academy. He was, however, unable to finish and the bust was displayed incomplete, but still to rave reviews.
Baily would finish the bust later, selling it to Joseph Neeld, a collector of Victoria sculpture in 1848. Upon Neeld’s death, his collection was dispersed throughout the collections of Britain’s finest museums.
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