The Gustaf VI Adolf Collection

Gustaf VI Adolf (1882-1973), King of Sweden from 1950 to 1973, had a particular interest in archaeology and history. He was an avid collector of Chinese art, drawings and prints. In his will, Gustaf VI Adolf donated his collection of modern drawings and his duplicates of Axel Fridell’s prints to the Nationalmuseum in 1973. The collection of drawings is an interesting cross-section of 20th-century drawing, as the King purchased the winning contributions to "Unga Tecknare”, a competition for young illustrators, organised by the Nationalmuseum in 1938-1975, 1981 and 1995-1997. Most of the print collection is now in the Bernadotte Library at Stockholm Palace.