Portrait in profile
Sight size : H. 18 ; W. 14 (cm.)
Overall dimensions : H. 32 (cm.)
France, late 16th century
Very rare profile portrait of the Valois Charles IX, finely depicted with gilding highlights and fine chasing. A virtuoso work illustrating the links between medals and the decorative arts, this plate is presented in a Northern-style frame of burl and blackened wood, in the style of the 17th century.
This portrait is part of a small body of repoussé work in partially gilded iron, of which several profiles of members of the royal family are known. These include a profile very similar to ours (Michel Rullier sale, Drouot, May 19, 2020), the King Henri III that we are presenting as a counterpart to this one, those of Henri IV and Marie de Médicis now in the Musée du Louvre, and one of the Grand Duchess of Tuscany (Giquello sale, January 27, 2023).
Condition report: wear from use