Fotoreproductie van een gravure van Het huwelijk van Maria de'Medici met koning Hendrik IV door Jean-Marc Nattier, naar het schilderij door Peter Paul Rubens before 1864

This is a photographic reproduction of an engraving of The Marriage of Maria de' Medici to King Henry IV. The original painting was made by Peter Paul Rubens. Rubens’ cycle of paintings of Maria de Medici, commissioned for the Luxembourg Palace in Paris, portrays the life of the French Queen as a sequence of triumphant historical and allegorical scenes. This one shows her marriage to Henry, with the figure of Henry being represented by a portrait held by an allegorical figure. This way, the painting is able to overcome the fact that Henry himself was not actually present at the wedding. The painting, and this print after it, speaks to the way images of the monarchy were carefully crafted and disseminated. To understand the political role of the image in this time, we can consult letters, memoirs, and diplomatic records, as well as the critical writings of the period. These sources allow the art historian to understand the role and function of art in its original context.