Portrait Of Charles Ix, King Of France, Follower Of François Clouet

Black chalk and sanguine on laid paper with watermark (bunch of grapes - IM), France, late 16th century, early 17th century.
Our delicate portrait fits perfectly within the graphic tradition of François Clouet's workshop, while revealing a distinct hand. The face is drawn with subtle modeling in black chalk, the sanguine warming the flesh tones. This refined representation of Charles IX displays the precision characteristic of royal portraits circulated in the 1560s and 1570s. The young king appears wearing his fluted ruff and plumed hat, according to an iconographic type well established at the time.
The work is executed on laid paper with a watermark of a bunch of grapes and the letters I and M, a motif listed in Charles-Moïse Briquet's work "Les filigranes, dictionnaire historique des marques de papier…" under reference 13196, with a precise date of 1582. This material detail confirms a consistent dating and places the sheet in the immediate continuity of the Clouet tradition. Our drawing, remarkably fresh, derives from the portrait of Charles IX, King of France, dated 1561, illustrated in the catalogue "Portraits dessinés de la Cour des Valois, les Clouet de Catherine de Médicis" by Alexandra Zvereva (no. 395, p. 365, held in a private collection). It perfectly illustrates the spread of Clouet's style after his death and the enduring nature of the official image of the Valois.
Another related work: portrait of Charles IX ca. 1566, no. 396 p. 366, Department of Prints and Drawings, Hermitage Museum, Saint Petersburg.

Dimensions: 22.5 x 16.5 cm – 48 x 42 cm with frame.

We extend our sincere thanks to Ms. Alexandra Zvereva for her assistance.

Bibliography:
- ZVEREVA, Alexandra (ed.), The Clouet Collection at the Château de Chantilly: Renaissance and Court Portraiture in France, Domaine de Chantilly, Nicolas Chaudun, 2011.
- ZVEREVA, Alexandra (ed.), The Clouets of Catherine de Medici: Graphic Masterpieces from the Musée Condé, (exh. cat., Chantilly, Musée Condé, September 25, 2002 – January 6, 2003), Paris, Somogy. d'art, 2002.
- ADHEMAR, Jean (ed.), The Clouet Family & the Court of the Kings of France: From Francis I to Henry IV, (exh. cat., Paris, Bibliothèque nationale de France, June-September 1970), Paris, Bibliothèque nationale de France, 1970.
- DELDICQUE, Mathieu, Clouet: The Mirror of Ladies, (exh. cat., Chantilly, Musée Condé, Domaine de Chantilly, June 1 - October 6, 2019), Paris, Editions Faton, 2019.
- JOLLET, Étienne, Jean & François Clouet, Paris, Lagune, 1997.
- BRIQUET, Charles-Moïse, Watermarks: A Historical Dictionary of Paper Marks, from their Appearance around 1282 until 1600, Alphonse Picard et fils, 1907.