Portrait Of Louis XIII Of Bourbon, King Of France, Franco-flemish School, 17th Cent

Portrait of Louis XIII of Bourbon, King of France, Franco-Flemish school, first half of the 17th century

Oil on copper, 21 × 16 cm

Small cabinet portrait depicting Louis XIII (1601–1643) in armour with a large pleated ruff. In the lower part appears a painted inscription in gold letters:

“LOUIS XIII ROY DE FRANCE / AGE DE XXII ANS”.

The painting is particularly interesting as it shows the sovereign at about twenty-two years of age, at a crucial historical moment, shortly after his reconciliation with his mother Marie de’ Medici and before the political rise of Cardinal Richelieu.

For the new Bourbon dynasty, strengthening the image of royal authority was a political necessity. At the court of Henry IV and Marie de’ Medici, the finest painters active between France and the Low Countries were called to create a new dynastic iconography of power, and the definition of the official image of the heir Louis XIII was one of the central aims of this programme.

Small portraits of this type, intended for cabinets or private collections, derive from official models circulated in the early decades of the 17th century and belong to the Franco-Flemish production connected with French court portraiture.

Old repoussé metal frame.

Good condition, with minor paint losses and some retouching.