Rowing Eight Before the College Barges, on a Carl XIV Johan Mount

A sepia photograph of a rowing eight, laid down on the printed title sheet from a 19th-century portrait of Carl XIV Johan, King of Sweden and Norway, published by Ferd. Reichardt & Comp. Carl Johan was born Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte in Pau in 1763. He rose to Marshal of France under Napoleon, was elected Swedish crown prince in 1810 and reigned from 1818 until his death in 1844.

Ornate college barges line the far bank, their upper decks crowded with spectators. On the near bank, men in caps and trilbies run along the towpath beside the crew, one wheeling a bicycle. The scene suggests Eights Week at Oxford between the wars.

Photographic print, probably a later print, laid on the original mount. The mount keeps its printed title ‘Carl Johann XIV / König v. Schweden u. Norwegen’, the imprint ‘Verlag v. Ferd. Reichardt & Comp.’ and, at the top, a crowned shield with lion supporters. Faint brown-ink script runs across the upper left margin. Pencilled ‘15-’ lower right. In a speckled silver frame.