Portret van Maria Leopoldina van Oostenrijk, gemalin van Ferdinand III 1648

This print portrays Maria Leopoldina of Austria, consort of Ferdinand III. Notice her large cross pendant, a potent symbol of faith and power. Such crosses, laden with jewels, trace back to Byzantine reliquaries, later adopted by European royalty. The cross signifies not just religious devotion, but also the divine right to rule. We see echoes of this in medieval reliquaries and Renaissance portraits, each iteration subtly shifting the emphasis from piety to dynastic authority. The visual vocabulary speaks of the interplay between spiritual legitimacy and earthly power, a dance that engages our collective memory. The weight of history—the crusades, the Reformation—all unconsciously affect our interpretation. The cross resurfaces throughout art history, each time a new layer of meaning is applied to it. The image becomes a powerful visual anchor, its potency undeniable.