Carousel Carriage of Maria Theresia

After enemy troops had been driven out of Bohemia in December 1742, Maria Theresia celebrated the victory on 2 January 1743 with a “ladies’ carousel” in the Winter Riding School in which she herself and the ladies of her court danced a quadrille with horse and carriage and engaged in a contest of skill. Afterwards the ruler and her ladies rode through the streets of Vienna to offer similar entertainment to the people. Of the eight richly carved and gold-plated carriages made for this ladies carousel, only this one has been preserved. © Monica Kurzel-Runtscheiner, Crane Neck and Gold Crepine. Courtly Splendour and Contemporary art – a confrontation, Exhibition Catalogue, Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna 2004