This watercolour depicts the lead pair of Hanoverian Creams harnessed to the Gold State Coach during the 1902 Coronation of Edward VII. It shows the unusual and luxurious red leather and ormolu-mounted State Harness. The horses’ manes and browbands are dressed with purple ribbon. The 1902 Coronation was the first time that the Gold State Coach was postilion-driven, and a postilion can be seen on the far horse wearing his State Livery. The coach had originally been driven by a coachman, seated high on a box at the front of the coach, but was converted for the Coronation. Beside the near horse is a groom, one of several who walk beside the horses and alongside the Gold State Coach. This event was one of the last times the Hanoverian Creams would be used at the Royal Mews.

They were distinctive horses, with rare cream-coloured coats, curled tails and pink Roman noses. Stallions were used as the carriage horses, but the first horses had been brought to Britain by George I in the early eighteenth century, and by the early twentieth century a decreasing gene pool meant breeding was difficult. The Hanoverian Creams were replaced by Windsor Greys, a type selected for colour and temperament, in the early twentieth century.