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Miniature in Limoges enamels * representing the portrait of King Saint Louis * (S. Ludovicus) holding the scepter, the crown of thorns of Christ and the three nails of the crucifixion, foliated spandrels in relief, in a carved wooden frame , Louis XIV period late seventeenth-early eighteenth centuries.
This miniature is in good condition and is of high quality. The frame is posterior (XIX). Trace of an old label on the back (Rouland or Roulaud).
A note: some wear on the enamel (especially at the level of the corners in relief), traces of old holes at the top and bottom which fixed the plate at the origin, small accident and lack in the lower left corner of the frame, see photos.
Enamel painted on copper appears in Limoges at the end of the 15th century. Enamel is a vitreous substance colored by metal oxides (tin, cobalt, manganese, antimony, etc.). Copper is the best support that can be found thanks to the proximity between its melting point and that of glass. The first artifacts were rectangular plates (often associated with triptychs) illustrating religious themes. The artists draw their inspiration from the drawings of the books of hours. Fairly quickly the fashion of the grisaille arises, then it is the Italian painting which serves as model. Towards the middle of the sixteenth century, the best enamellers were inspired by the engravings of the books, which are themselves influenced by the art of Fontainebleau. Thus appear Pierre Reymond, Pierre Courteys, Master IC, etc. But it is Léonard Limosin that art historians place in the figurehead of limousine enamelling at this time. (see site heritage-history, page dedicated to the rooms of the Louvre)
commonly called St. Louis, is a king of Capetian France of the thirteenth century, who ruled for more than 43 years from 1226 until his death. Regarded as a saint during his lifetime, he was canonized by the Catholic Church in 1297. He led a reign inspired by the values ??of Christianity that helped to found the idea that the spiritual and political powers can be embodied by one man. It mitigates the excesses of feudalism in favor of the notion of the common good and develops the royal justice where the sovereign appears as the "supreme justice". In this way, he gradually moves France from a feudal monarchy to a modern monarchy.
