Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Portrait of Catherine de' Medici
(Renaissance Europe )
Catherine de' Medici (1519-89) was the daughter of Lorenzo de' Medici, the duke of Urbino, and his French wife. Catherine married the duke of Orleans, later King Henry II of France (1519-59). Here, she is depicted with a widow's cap, which she continued to wear long after her husband's death. She was a patron and admirer of the exquisite enamel tableware produced in Limoges.
A linear, refined style with little shading is typical of the work of François Clouet, painter to the French court at Fontainebleau and a favorite of Queen Catherine. There are many versions of this painting, made for courtiers and family who wanted a portrait of the queen.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Don Marcello Massarenti Collection, Rome [no. 588]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1902, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Conservation
| Date | Description | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| 1/23/1942 | Treatment | coated; inpainted; varnish removed or reduced |
| 4/10/1992 | Examination | examined for condition |
| 9/1/1995 | Treatment | chemical analysis; cleaned; coated; filled; infrared spectroscopy; inpainted; media consolidation; surface cleaned; varnish removed or reduced; x-ray |
Geographies
France, Fontainebleau (Place of Origin)
Measurements
13 1/4 x 10 in. (33.7 x 25.4 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters with the Massarenti Collection, 1902
Location in Museum
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
37.415