It is the first public depiction of a Danish monarch in everyday, contemporary attire, rather than that of antiquity, or galla uniform, popular in earlier sculpture.

The inscription on the left-hand side (south) reads "Her følte han sig lykkelig i sit trofaste folks midte".

Wilckens and Just Mathias Thiele states that Bertel Thorvaldsen began to work on a monument to Frederick VI at his own initiative.

It depicted the king on his throne wearing his coronation gown and was intended for a location in Rosenborg Castle Gardens.

[3] The committee was finally revived in 1848 after an anonymously published letter to the editor in a newspaper had brought the project back on the agenda.

Jonas Collin was in favour of a location in front of Thorvaldsens Museum while other proposals included Rosenborg Castle Gardens, Esplanaden and Christiansborg Slotsplads.