King and Queen
- Artist: Henry Moore OM, CH
- Date: 1952–3, cast 1957
- Medium: Bronze
- Dimensions: object: 1640 x 1390 x 910 mm
- Museum: Tate Britain
- Collection record: Tate Britain website
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About this artwork
This is “King and Queen” by Henry Moore. The piece is a bronze cast, measuring about 1.6 m tall. Created in the early 1950s and finished in 1957, it reflects Moore’s fascination with ancient king‑figures. He says the work was “connected with the archaic…idea of a king…the head of the king which is a head and a crown, face and beard combined into one form.” In other words, the two figures merge their heads, crowns and beards into single flowing lines, giving the sense that both are unified as one monarchial whole.
Moore produced the work around the same time as Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in 1953, so the timing is almost symbolic. The bronze surfaces catch light with soft patinas, while the rough forms echo stone carvings of earlier times. Observe how the king sits back to the queen; their hands clasped together create a quiet dialogue between the two bodies.
The piece captures universal themes of rulership – not specific people, but archetypal kings and queens. The cast shows the way Moore could transform simple, blocky shapes into living figures that still feel intimate. It’s an excellent example of his late 1950s style, where he moved from simple casts to more dynamic forms that speak about identity and public ceremony.
See it in person
King and Queen is in the collection of Tate Britain on Millbank, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
