Comment
"this portrait of the youthful and fresh-faced anne of austria was probably painted when the queen was around 20 years old. The identity of the queen as the sitter is strongly suggested by the monogram ar in gold to be found amongst the proliferation of rare natural pearls and patterns on the rich silver and gold embroidered crimson dress. Anne of austria was often depicted wearing elaborate lace collars, and in this one she has four tiers, probably wired to the collar. Above this she wears a single visible pearl drop earring, a symbol suggestive of her purity and innocence in the early years of her unhappy married life – for pearls acquired multiple symbolic meanings quite early in their history, standing for worldly vanity as well as faith, and while white pearls became a symbol of the virgin mary’s purity, this quickly became a quality transferred to those women wearing them, even though they also came to be associated with venus, the goddess of love. In this portrait pearls also hang from her dress as well as forming part of the decoration in her hair, the quantity of these rare jewels displaying her wealth and status as queen of france and navarre. Recent research in paris indicates that this painting is almost certainly by dumonstier, and not by pourbus, to whom this work was previously attributed. The formality of the pose and steady gaze of the queen, and the ostentatious character of the costume, nevertheless softened by a delicacy of touch are typical of french artists in the 1620s, and the sensitivity of the portrait without flattery makes the queen seem more alive and deeply touching. [. . ]
daniel lecoeur, published the first monograph on the artist, daniel dumonstier 1574-1646 (arthena, 2006), but this mainly deals with his extensive drawings oeuvre. ". Date: circa 1620. Medium: oil on canvas. Collection: Unidentified location. Attributed to Daniel Dumonstier - Queen Anne of Austria
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