Pair of portrait drawings of the Marquise Madame de Sévigné and her daughter Françoise, 19th century
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Pair of pencil drawings representing the portrait of Madame de Sévigné*, Marie de Rabutin-Chantal, Marquise de Sévigné and her daughter Françoise Marguerite de Sévigné, Countess of Grignan**, in gilded stuccoed wooden frames, from the first half of the 19th century.
These drawings are in good condition as are the frames. These drawings were made from the engravings present in the works "Lettres de Madame de Sévigné", notably in the 1806 edition (engraved by PF Tardieu).
Please note: some accidents and losses on the frames, slight yellowing on the paper, wear and tear, see photos.
known as the Marquise or, more simply, Madame de Sévigné, born February 5, 1626 in Paris, and died April 17, 1696 at the Château de Grignan (in Provence), is a French letter writer. The letters she wrote to her daughter, Madame de Grignan, have become a staple of French literature. They also constitute a remarkable source for the analysis of intergenerational relationships and their history. Throughout the letters she wrote to her daughter, a correlation between motherhood and writing emerges: the coexistence of the figure of the mother and that of the woman of letters intertwines and gives birth to Madame de Sévigné as a letter writer. The passion of a mother for her daughter, the Countess of Grignan, marks the beginning of a correspondence marked by the intensity of the desire to maintain this relationship despite the distance and circumstances that separate them.
is the main recipient of her mother's letters, Madame de Sévigné. François Adhémar de Monteil de Grignan, lieutenant-general of Provence, married her on January 29, 1669. Her husband being governor of Provence, she left Paris and her mother for Aix-en-Provence and frequently resided in her castle of Grignan, which was at the origin of one of the most famous correspondences in French literature. Unfortunately, only the letters of Madame de Sévigné have been preserved, the family having destroyed the replies.