Traumatic strabismus in Franz Josias Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld'portraits (1697-1764).

Objective: A case of traumatic strabismus was painted in two portraits of Franz Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (1697-1764). Both canvases are held by the Art Collection of Veste Coburg (Accession numbers: M.076 & M.363).

Methods: Resorting to the "Guidelines for Iconodiagnosis", a careful comparison of the portraits of the Duke pre-dating an accident with those showing evidence of an ocular trauma afterwards, was performed. An analysis of the historical and biographical written sources was carried out as well.

Results: At the age of 32 years, while playing battledore and shuttlecock (in French "jeu de volant", a forerunner of badminton), Duke Franz Josias sustained a traumatic left eye injury. This did not heal with time and was depicted in contemporary paintings of the Duke.

Conclusion: Combining both biographical and artistic sources, a diagnosis of post-traumatic strabismus due to injury of the left inferior rectus muscle was proposed with an Iconodiagnosis level of evidence II.