Princess Diana of Latium (1945 painting)
| Princess Diana of Latium | |
|---|---|
| Latin: Princeps Diana Latii | |
| <imgur w=200>QssIJC1.jpg</imgur> | |
| Artist | unknown |
| Year | 1945 |
| Medium | Oil on canvas |
| Subject | Diana Augusta |
| Location | Imperial Art Gallery, Ghish |
| Owner | disputed |
Princess Diana of Latium (Latin: Princeps Diana Latii; Ghantish: Printzesa Lazio Diana) is a 1945 oil painting of Latin Empress Diana Augusta, believed to be commissioned by her father, Latin Emperor Constantine XIX for her 12th birthday. While it was never publicly revealed, the painting was given to Diana as an early birthday gift in part of a court ceremony. The painting disappeared before the start of the Social War, and eventually resurfaced in Ghant during the mid 2010s.
Background
The painting was commissioned by Latin Emperor Constantine XIX, and subsequently gifted to then Princess Diana of Latium ahead of her 12th birthday in March 1945. During the Social War, the painting disappeared, believed to be sold or stolen by the VMNO during the April 12 coup. It was rediscovered in YEAR when it was included in an exhibit in the Imperial Art Gallery of Ghish, where it was said to be a painting of Princess Diana of Latium. An investigation was ordered by Emperor Nathan IV of Ghant, whose possession the painting had been in as an exhibit at the gallery. Upon news of the painting resurfacing, Latin Emperor Jason VI Augustus requested that the painting be returned to Latium as his mother was the rightful owner.
The investigation determined that the painting was taken from Latium before the April 12 coup and was included in the galleries of Afanasiia of Nekulturnya, Diana's maternal grandmother, located in Bastyak, Nekulturnya from 1945 until her death in the 1970s. After Afanasiia's death, the paintings in her gallery were either sold, distributed among living family, or placed into storage. The painting remained in storage until the Great Northern War in YEAR, when it was unknowingly transported from the palace to Ghant. The painting eventually arrived at the Ghantish Kingdom of Izotza, where it was hung in the halls of the Kings of Izotza until the death of King Kukavanger, whom, according to courtiers, believed it was simply a painting of a "pretty blonde girl". After King Kukavanger's death, the painting was sold to Prince Edward of Ghant in his capacity as the Director of the Imperial Art Gallery in Ghish.
In 2017, it was determined that a young Diana Augusta of Latium was the subject of the painting. The painting remains in the possession of the Ghantish Imperial Family, though overtures have been made that the painting will be returned. The painting was returned to the Latin Imperial Family during the celebrations following the christening of Diana, Princess of Youth in December 2018.