Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots, by François Clouet

Miniature of Mary, Queen of Scots, by Francois Clouet. Miniature of Mary, Queen of Scots, by Francois Clouet. Royal Collection Trust / Copyright Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2014, , acc. no. RCIN 401229.

Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots (1542-1587), was portrayed by the French artist François Clouet (1511-1572) when she was about seventeen years old, shortly after her marriage in 1558 to François, heir to the French throne (François II). François died in 1560 and from that moment onwards Mary’s clothing changed and she is generally shown in plain, mourning garments.

There are two versions of the portrait: a painting that is now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London (acc. no. 625-1882), and a very similar miniature, also painted by François Clouet, now in the Royal Collection, Windsor (RCIN 401229).

In the portrait, Mary is depicted wearing a pale red bodice decorated with applied pearls in small triangles and silver coloured braids that outline slits in the bodice of Mary’s gown. The (masculine) upright collar derives from a Spanish fashion of the period that was popular in France.

Royal Collection Trust online catalogue (retrieved 5 June 2016).

GVE

Last modified on Sunday, 14 August 2016 18:09