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During his reign, Charles I amassed an extraordinary art collection of around 1,500 pictures, 500 sculptures and countless other works of art such as tapestries, hangings, coins and medals. Following his execution in 1649, the collection was sold and dispersed throughout Europe.

Historic Inventories

There were two major inventories of Charles I’s art collection. The first inventory was carried out from around 1638 to 1640 by the king’s keeper, Abraham van der Doort. The second, ‘The Inventories and Valuations of the King’s Goods’ (otherwise known as the Sale Inventory) was drawn up in preparation for selling the collection after his execution on 30 January 1649.

There are some paintings in the collection that do not appear in either of these two inventories, as they were given away via gift and exchange. In these instances, we must rely on other means of identification, such as branding. As part of his warrant to care for the king's artworks, van der Doort was charged 'to order mark and number them, and to keep a register of them'. In addition to compiling the inventory, the keeper fixed descriptive notes to the back of paintings which detailed attribution, title, provenance and even the date of acquisition.

Branding

A painting in the collection will often bear a ‘CR’ (Charles when King) or the rarer ‘CP’ (Charles when Prince of Wales) brand on its reverse side. The brands were forcibly imprinted into wood panel or seared into canvas. There is evidence to suggest that this process was rapid; so rapid, in fact, that it was insensitive to the form or format of the artwork itself. For example, compared against the painted side of the panel, Hans Holbein’s Derich Born portrait bears its brand ‘upside-down’. 

There are some paintings known to have been part of Charles I’s collection that bear no brand. Given the size of the collection and the rapidity with which the king was acquiring new works, it is plausible that van der Doort, or those in charge of branding, did not have sufficient opportunity to brand each of the paintings.

In some cases, a brand has been discovered during conservation treatment. Most recently, a 'CR' brand was found on the reverse side of Artemisia Gentileschi’s Susanna and the Elders at Royal Collection Trust.

Research for a project into Charles I’s Lost Collection was carried out by Niko Munz while at Royal Collection Trust (2016-2019). Niko Munz continues to consult on queries and research relating to the project.