G. Cederstorm - Bringing Home the Body of King

Gustaf Cederström painted Bringing Home the Body of King Charles XII of Sweden in Paris in 1877-78. It is an imaginative portrayal of the royal hero's return to Sweden following the fatal shot at Halden in Norway in 1718. In order to make his picture as realistic as possible, Cederström painted numerous sketches and studies outdoors. He erected a stretcher, with a professional model, an Italian named Raffaele Fusco, lying on it and portraying Charles XII. Several small sketches in oils from 1877 survive. The artist has striven to make each of the soldiers an individual. The people whom he painted were a mixture of professional models, colleagues, friends and relatives.