The portrait as a political tool

Text by Collections Assistant Trine Nordkvelle

The National Museum’s collection contains an intriguing portrait of Queen Christina of Sweden (1626–1689). She is depicted as a living bust with a helmet, accompanied by an owl, books and an olive branch. She is gazing into space with an absent-minded look. What does this portrait seek to express? What can a single engraving tell us about one of history’s most fascinating women?

The prince-princess

On 8 December 1626, a joyful announcement echoes through the corridors of the Tre Kronor castle in Stockholm. The Queen has given birth to a son! No, wait … a daughter! Scraps of foetal membrane still cover the child between the head and the knee and the new-born has a robust and powerful voice. At first the midwives think it’s a boy.

The king takes the child in his arms and smiles:

She’ll be a clever one; she’s fooled us already!

At the age of six, Christina succeeds to the Swedish throne. She is treated like a young prince. In a male-dominated environment, she is allowed to conceal her gender. She is an exception. The established expectations for a woman’s upbringing do not apply in her case.

Christina is highly intelligent and has a good ear for languages. From the age of eight, she studies religion, philosophy, Swedish history and classical languages. By the age of fourteen, she can read and speak French, Latin and Greek. She enjoys fencing and shooting and can handle a horse. Statecraft and politics are essential elements of her education and she listens attentively to her royal counsellors. In 1644 she turns eighteen and assumes her royal duties. As a sovereign monarch, she answers to none but God.

The Minerva of the North

Queen Christina pursues a policy of independence. In the early years of her reign her main goal is to end the Thirty Years War that has been ravaging Europe. Her desire for peace makes her popular with the people. In 1648, peace is achieved and Queen Christina is celebrated as a heroine. She is hailed as the goddess of wisdom, Minerva, or Pallas Athene. It was a name the art-loving queen was happy to adopt, for Minerva is also the patroness of the arts. She orders medals to be minted depicting her in the guise of Minerva.