Portret van Claudia van Valois, koningin van Frankrijk 1576 - 1614

Thomas de Leu rendered this engraving of Claudia of Valois, Queen of France, around the turn of the 17th century. A striking feature is the pearl necklace draped across her chest, a symbol of wealth and status, but also of purity and tears. The pearl, a recurrent motif throughout history, appears in Renaissance portraits as a sign of chastity, as seen in Botticelli's Venus, or in antiquity as an attribute of Aphrodite, goddess of love. Yet, its luster belies a connection to the melancholic, as pearls were believed to be formed from the tears of oysters. In the collective memory, pearls evoke dualities: joy and sorrow, purity and seduction. This inherent tension reflects a deeper psychological interplay, a subconscious understanding of beauty intertwined with suffering. The emotional power of this image lies in this paradox, engaging us on a level beyond mere representation. The pearls, like echoes from the past, resonate with a timeless, cyclical progression.