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Lot Essay
The identification of the sitter is traditional - he was identified as Calvin in the Stowe sale, and the inscription on the reverse seems furthermore to pre-date that - and must therefore, as in any such case, be regarded with a degree of caution. Nonetheless, unlike with many such old identifications, Calvin's physiognomy is relatively well-recorded and, within the limitations of those early images, seems to accord with that of the present sitter; most comparable is the enamel portrait of Calvin by Léonard Limosin (see E. Doumergue, Iconographie calvinienne, Lausanne, 1909, pp. 13-18). That Corneille should have had an opportunity to paint Calvin's portrait is also possible, as the divine may have stayed in Lyons in either 1536 or 1541, on his way to Geneva.
John Calvin (the Latinized form of his birth name, Jean Cauvin) was one of the most important figures of the Reformation. A Frenchman by birth, he studied for the priesthood in Paris in his youth, before turning his attentions to civil and canon law in Orleans when his father became disaffected with the clergy. Exposed to the ideas of Luther while he was still in Paris, Calvin's writing indicates that he had definitely moved into the Protestant camp by 1533, on 1 November of which year, he delivered a speech in which he attacked the established church and called for reforms.
Calvin's ideas, rather than bringing about the reforms he sought, elicited a wave of anti-Protestant sentiment that forced him to flee for his own safety. It was during this period that he began work on his Institution de la Religion Chrétienne, the voluminous work that would consume a good deal of his energy for the next three decades. In 1536, he settled in Geneva, where he remained for much of the rest of his life, working in support of the Protestant cause there. In 1541, pro-Protestant forces gained control of the city and for the remainder of his life, Calvin stood as the dominant figure in a Geneva that became a point of refuge for persecuted Protestants from all over Europe.
Despite Calvin's work in Geneva, his chief claim to an enduring legacy is found in his theology, which has been greatly influential in many Protestant denominations. The primary tenets of Calvinism include a belief in the primacy of the scripture as an authority for doctrinal decisions, a belief in predestination, a belief in salvation wholly accomplished by grace with no influence from works, and a rejection of the episcopacy. Along with the Institutes, he also produced commentaries on the books of the Bible.
John Calvin (the Latinized form of his birth name, Jean Cauvin) was one of the most important figures of the Reformation. A Frenchman by birth, he studied for the priesthood in Paris in his youth, before turning his attentions to civil and canon law in Orleans when his father became disaffected with the clergy. Exposed to the ideas of Luther while he was still in Paris, Calvin's writing indicates that he had definitely moved into the Protestant camp by 1533, on 1 November of which year, he delivered a speech in which he attacked the established church and called for reforms.
Calvin's ideas, rather than bringing about the reforms he sought, elicited a wave of anti-Protestant sentiment that forced him to flee for his own safety. It was during this period that he began work on his Institution de la Religion Chrétienne, the voluminous work that would consume a good deal of his energy for the next three decades. In 1536, he settled in Geneva, where he remained for much of the rest of his life, working in support of the Protestant cause there. In 1541, pro-Protestant forces gained control of the city and for the remainder of his life, Calvin stood as the dominant figure in a Geneva that became a point of refuge for persecuted Protestants from all over Europe.
Despite Calvin's work in Geneva, his chief claim to an enduring legacy is found in his theology, which has been greatly influential in many Protestant denominations. The primary tenets of Calvinism include a belief in the primacy of the scripture as an authority for doctrinal decisions, a belief in predestination, a belief in salvation wholly accomplished by grace with no influence from works, and a rejection of the episcopacy. Along with the Institutes, he also produced commentaries on the books of the Bible.