MIGNARD, Pierre
(b. 1612, Troyes, d. 1695, Paris)

Portrait of Françoise-Marguerite, Countess of Grignan

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Oil on canvas, 68 x 56 cm
Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence

Mignard speciality was prettiness in the Italian style. The sitter's vaguely classical garb, trimmed with flowers adorning her bosom, might suggest an identity as Flora, Roman goddess of blossoming spring. Françoise-Marguerite was the daughter of Madame de Sévigné, whose daily letters provide unmatched treasures of inside into life under Louis XIV.