Gripsholm’s Treasures

There is a wonderful castle on a small island in Sweden the construction of which was initiated by the Swedish king Gustav I in 1537. Where have I got this knowledge from? I have never been there unfortunately, but I have received a booklet of waste stamps containing four stamps featuring pictures exhibited by The Swedish National Portrait Gallery located in Gripsholm Castle. I used already one of these stamps before to paint a former picture of mine titled My Steed is a Beautiful Chestnut… I studied the history of the Castle that time, I saw many photos made of the Castle and we viewed even a thriller the scene of which was laid here. I was thus set to paint my next piece with these stamps. To paint the background, I used the booklet itself featuring the Wolves, the Russian cannons seized as a trophy of the war against the Russians. These special pieces were made in the year of 1579.