Marie de Hainaut, Duchesse de Bourbon – Hand-Colored Engraving, c.1900
€ 340
One of a kind: this is the sheet in the photographs. Ships from Langweer, the Netherlands.
Date
1900
Sheet size
33.5 × 25 cm (13.2 × 9.8 in)
Condition
Good
Reference
BG-13158-58
Condition
Condition report: Excellent impression with vivid hand-coloring, especially strong in the golden lion and blue fleurs-de-lys. Light age-toning around the margins, otherwise clean and well-preserved. Wide margins, blank verso.
About this sheet
Hand-Colored Engraving of Marie de Hainaut, Duchesse de Bourbon (after 1827, ca. 1900 edition) A finely hand-colored engraving depicting Marie de Hainaut (1280–1354), wife of Louis I, Duke of Bourbon, grandson of Saint Louis (King Louis IX of France). She is portrayed in majestic attire, crowned and draped in an opulent mantle lined with ermine, the emblem of nobility. Her gown combines two heraldic devices: the golden lion of Hainaut on a sable field and the fleurs-de-lys of France—a striking visual representation of her dynastic connections.
Marie de Hainaut’s marriage to Louis I in 1310 reinforced the ties between the powerful County of Hainaut and the Bourbon branch of the French royal family. She thus became an important figure in the intricate web of alliances that defined 14th-century European politics. Her depiction in this costume series underscores her role not only as Duchess of Bourbon but also as a symbolic link between French and Low Countries’ nobility.
This image belongs to the celebrated Galerie Française de Femmes Célèbres, originally published in Paris in 1827 with designs by Louis-Marie Lanté and engraving by Georges Jacques Gatine. The present impression stems from the ca. 1900 reissue, hand-colored with great care to highlight the deep blues and rich golds of her heraldic dress.
Condition report: Excellent impression with vivid hand-coloring, especially strong in the golden lion and blue fleurs-de-lys. Light age-toning around the margins, otherwise clean and well-preserved. Wide margins, blank verso.
Framing tips: A cream or light ivory matting will accentuate the heraldic blue and gold, while a dark wood or gilt frame underscores the regal character of the portrait. For a refined presentation, consider a double mat with a fine golden inner border to echo the crown and heraldry.
Technique: Hand-colored engraving (later impression, ca. 1900) Maker: After Louis-Marie Lanté (artist) and Georges Jacques Gatine (engraver), Paris, 1827
