Frederik VII's ligfærd d. 2. december 1863

Carl Locher was a Danish marine painter and printmaker who documented naval and maritime subjects throughout his career. This 1889 painting depicting the state funeral procession of King Frederik VII on December 2, 1863 is a significant historical document as well as an artistic work: the king's death and the subsequent succession crisis triggered the Second Schleswig War of 1864, one of the most traumatic events in Danish nineteenth-century history. Locher's decision to paint the funeral 26 years after the event reflects the enduring resonance of the episode in Danish national memory.

Locher treats the funeral procession with solemn dignity, organizing the composition around the formal pageantry of the cortège moving through Copenhagen. The handling of the winter light — cold, grey, and horizontal — lends the scene an appropriate gravitas.