Engraving: *the Birth Of Louis XIII, Or The Queen's Childbirth*, After Rubens, 1810

This engraving depicts “The Queen’s Childbirth” (also known as The Birth of Louis XIII), based on the original work by Peter Paul Rubens. The birth of Marie de Médicis on September 27, 1601, at Fontainebleau, giving birth to the future Louis XIII. The scene combines historical figures and mythological allegories (Lucina, goddess of childbirth; the Genius of France holding the infant; and the chariot of Phoebus/Apollo in the sky). The engraving was created by Louis Duthé based on the painting by Peter Paul Rubens (1577–1640), part of the famous Cycle of Marie de Médicis commissioned for the Luxembourg Palace and now housed at the Louvre Museum (Rubens Pinxit).
The work was engraved in the first quarter of the 19th century (circa 1805–1815), a period during which Duthé engraved several pieces based on Rubens for the publication of the collection of the Galerie du Palais du Luxembourg / Musée Napoléon.