LIMOSIN, Léonard
(b. ca. 1505, Limoges, d. ca. 1575, Limoges)

Portrait of Anne the Montmorency

1556
Enamel on copper, mounted on gilt wood, 72 x 54 cm
Musée du Louvre, Paris

Léonard Limosin, who first worked for François I in 1545, was named a member of the royal household under Henri II, during whose reign he was at great demand at the court, receiving commissions for the royal chapels as well as for portraits of important dignitaries.

This large oval likeness of Anne de Montmorency is especially impressive. Limosin had so mastered his craft that his enamels have the precision and lightness of oil portraits. Anne, First Duke of Montmorency (1493-1567), was a French soldier, diplomat and constable of France. Named for his godmother, Queen Anne of Brittany, he served three kings - Francis I, Henry II, and Charles IX - in war and peace. He was sixty-three when he sat for this image; while his face is wrinkled, his eyes are bright and piercing. Set into the gilt-wood frame, with its strapwork and foliage inspired by the art of Fontainebleau, are enamel copper plaques bearing ornamental motifs and emblems, notably the constable's device.