POURBUS, Frans the Younger
(b. 1569, Antwerpen, d. 1622, Paris)

Elisabeth of France

1615
Oil on canvas, 52 x 43 cm
Galleria Palatina (Palazzo Pitti), Florence

Elisabeth was about thirteen when she stood for this portrait. It may have been made to send to a prospective bridegroom - a great advantage of canvas over wood as a support is that canvas can be rolled up for transport. Her astonishing gown, worth multiples of what the painting cost, would have conveyed the princess's value on the marriage market.