Bildnis des Charles de Guise, Cardinal de Lorraine

1572

El Greco, attributed to1541 Candia (Kreta) – 1614 Toledo
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We have 1784 paintings online.
The old reinforcments (22 cm at the top, 11.5 cm at the sides and bottom) were removed or covered in 2000. Charles de Guise (1525-1574), Archbishop of Reims, was one of the leaders of the Spanish Catholic Party at the court of the last Valois. The parrot, Italian 'papagallo' points as a pun (Papa gallo = Gallic pope) to the ambitions of the cardinal. A contemporary reproduction engraving (parrot replaced by cross) and several old copies are known. The attribution to El Greco is based on stylistic considerations and is agreed upon by most scholars.
Also known as
Portrait of Charles de Guise, Cardinal de Lorraine Portrait de Charles de Guise, Cardinal de Lorraine
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
image: 178.5 x 94.5 cm
Inventory number
KS 47
Credit line
Kunsthaus Zürich, The Betty and David Koetser Foundation, 1986