Henry III (1551–1589), King of France

Francois Clouet's portrait of Henry III, King of France, painted on vellum laid on wood in 1578, depicts the last Valois king during the turbulent period of the Wars of Religion. Henry III, who reigned from 1574 to his assassination in 1589, was a complex figure — cultured and intelligent but unable to resolve the religious civil wars tearing France apart. Clouet's delicate miniature-like technique on vellum creates an image of exquisite refinement appropriate to this most cultivated of French kings.

Clouet's technique on vellum achieves an extraordinary smoothness and precision, almost like a miniature painting scaled up to panel size. The king's features are rendered with microscopic detail, while the rich costume is painted with the material precision that defines French court portraiture at its finest.