This early 20th-century oil painting by Danish artist Christian Tilemann-Petersen (1874-1926) depicts an interior at Rosenborg Castle in Copenhagen, with a beautiful arrangement of historic furniture.

At the centre stands a tall upholstered armchair, its pale fabric catching the light against the deep red and green walls. To the right hangs a magnificent crowned mirror, its carved and gilded frame surrounding a dark oval glass. 

The left side is altogether darker. A cabinet almost disappears into the shadows, yet its drawers, mounts and polished surface can still be discerned, along with further objects placed above. Tilemann-Petersen was particularly adept at this kind of restrained illumination. Rather than describing everything evenly, he allows individual objects to emerge gradually from the darkness, giving the room both depth and atmosphere.

The interior appears to be one of Rosenborg's historical period rooms, probably associated with the reign of Christian VI. By Tilemann-Petersen's time, Rosenborg had long operated as a museum and many of its rooms had been arranged chronologically using royal furnishings from different residences. As such, the painting is a record of how Denmark's royal past was presented to visitors in the early 20th century.

This was a subject particularly suited to Tilemann-Petersen. While many of his contemporaries pursued more expressive forms of painting, he developed a reputation for detailed depictions of historic interiors, castles and churches.

Signed/dated in the lower left and held in a gilt frame.

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Medium: Oil on canvas
Overall size: 25” x 29” / 64cm x 74cm
Year of creation: 1917 
Labels & Inscriptions: Inscribed on the reverse.
Provenance: Private collection, Denmark.
Condition: Cleaned. Revarnished. Frame in excellent condition.
Artist’s auction maximum: £12,203 achieved in 2007 for ‘Interior of a Salon at Fredensborg (1921)’.
Our reference: BRV2314