This teeny miniature shows King William III (1650-1702) in a full-bottomed wig, lace jabot and blue and red robes with the gold chain of the Knight of the Garter. Behind his shoulder is a skull with an inscription in gold ‘Ob. / Mar / y 8. / 1701’.*William III died on 8 March 1702 after falling from his horse which had slipped on a molehill in Richmond Park. The skull in the portrait suggests this is a commemorative piece but it would appear that the artist either made an error with the year of the King’s death or was confused by the late 17th century conversion from the Julian (Old Style) Calendar to the Gregorian (New Style) Calendar.*William III was a Dutch Protestant and a grandson of Charles I. He married his cousin Mary, the eldest daughter and heir of James II. Upon his death, Jacobites raised their glasses to the ‘little gentleman in black velvet’.*Painted on vellum, the portrait is in fine condition (the colours, especially the gold on the chain, are mo...