Lot Essay
This drawing possibly relates to the series of pictures commissioned by Catherine de' Medici in 1623 for the Cabinet Doré at the Luxembourg Palace in Paris, sold at Sotheby's, 21 April 1993, lots 28-33, illustrated.
The theme of the series was the history of the Medici family, and more particularly the successful marriages that allied them to the Imperial, French and Spanish royal families. Catherine de' Medici herself chose the subjects: The Marriage of Catherine de' Medici and Henry, Duke of Orléans, later Henry II of France painted by Francesco Bianchi; The Marriage of Francesco de' Medici and Joanna of Austria by Jacopo Ligozzi; The Exchange of the French and Spanish Princesses, The Marriage of King Louis XIII of France to the Infanta, Anne of Austria, with the Marriage of Elizabeth of France to the Prince of Asturias, later Philip IV of Spain, both by Valerio Marucelli and The Proxy Marriage of Maria de'Medici and Henry IV of France by Jacopo da Empoli.
The theme of the series was the history of the Medici family, and more particularly the successful marriages that allied them to the Imperial, French and Spanish royal families. Catherine de' Medici herself chose the subjects: The Marriage of Catherine de' Medici and Henry, Duke of Orléans, later Henry II of France painted by Francesco Bianchi; The Marriage of Francesco de' Medici and Joanna of Austria by Jacopo Ligozzi; The Exchange of the French and Spanish Princesses, The Marriage of King Louis XIII of France to the Infanta, Anne of Austria, with the Marriage of Elizabeth of France to the Prince of Asturias, later Philip IV of Spain, both by Valerio Marucelli and The Proxy Marriage of Maria de'Medici and Henry IV of France by Jacopo da Empoli.