London: Queen's Gallery

 We went to the Queen's Gallery, which is just behind Buckingham Palace.

 They had a number of nice displays there. It takes an hour or two to tour the Queen's Gallery, as it is nowhere near has big as the British Museum.

  Aurora and Tithonus, 1720 by Sebastiano Ricci. Aurora fell in love with the mortal Tithonus and asked Jupiter to give him eternal life. Unfortunately, Aurora forgot to ask for eternal youth also....that is an aged Tithonus on the ground.

 An 1805 clock by Pierre-Philippe Thomire.

Venus and Mars, 1590 by Johann Rottenhammer the Elder.

My wife.

 The shield of Achilles, 1821 by John Flaxman for Rundell, Bridge & Rundell.

 North African style Burnous (cloak) from 1798. It is thought to be French. It was captured from Napolean's carriage after the battle of Waterloo in 1815 and presented to George IV by Marshal Blucher.

 Cardinal Richelieu, 1640-42 by Philippe de Champaigne. Cardinal Richelieu was gthe Chief Minister to Louis XIII and the effective ruler of France.

 While I find this painting extremely beautiful, someone painted outside the lines, over the robe! Tut, tut!

 Charles-Alexandre de Calonne, 1784 by Elisabeth-Louise Vigee-Lebrun. This portrait of the French Finance Minister shows him with a letter in hand addressed to "Au Roi" (To The King). Calonne's charter outlining financial reform (shown on the table) might have prevented the French Revolution but was never implemented.

And a sign that the royal wedding was just two weeks earlier: this is a shot of the Queen's Gallery gift shop.