King Charles I of England (1600-1649), three-quarter portrait

The Kunsthistorisches Museum does not put van Dyck's name on this canvas by itself. Its catalogue credits his workshop, around 1632. Van Dyck had settled in London that year, and the English court wanted the king's likeness in quantity. A royal portrait was a working object then. Versions went out to ambassadors, to allies, to loyal households, and a busy studio produced them from the master's prototype while he moved on to the next sitter. Charles wears the star of the Order of the Garter and rests a hand on his sword. He had been governing without calling Parliament for three years by the time this was painted, and he carried on for another eight. The canvas has been traceable in the imperial collection in Vienna since 1816. The museum currently hangs it at Schloss Ambras, above Innsbruck, at the far western end of the country.