Design for an Equestrian Statue of Henry II of France

Design for an Equestrian Statue of Henry II of France

RP-T-1953-140

In 1559 Catherine de Medici commissioned Michelangelo to create a monument with an equestrian statue for her husband, who had died in a tournament. However, it was never realized due to the death of the artist and of the assistant who was to take on the work. This sketch focuses mainly on the monumental pedestal (base). Its shape is derived from a design that the great master had made about fifty years earlier.

draughtsman: Michelangelo

1559 - 1564

zwart en wit krijt

height 130 mm x width 120 mm

Aankoop uit het legaat van de heer J.C.J. Bierens de Haan, Amsterdam, met medewerking van Mevrouw Baronesse de Geer van Juphaas, geb. Roëll van Hazerswoude en van de Vereniging Rembrandt

purchase 1953

Public domain

…; collection Dr. E. Baron van der Heydt, Ascona;{Joh. Wilde 1959, p. 378}…; Ferrucio Asta (1900-1952), Milan;{Joh. Wilde 1959.} …; bequeathed by Dr. Johan Catharinus Justus Bierens de Haan (1867-1951), Amsterdam, to the museum, with support from Mrs. Baronesse de Geer van Jutphaas, née Roëll van Hazerswoude and the Vereniging Rembrandt, 1953

Please note that this provenance was formulated with a special focus on provenance research for the years 1933-45 and could therefore be incomplete. There may be more (mostly earlier) provenance information known in the museum. In case this item has an uncertain or incomplete provenance for the years 1933-45, the Rijksmuseum welcomes information and assistance in the investigation and clarification of the provenance of all works during that era.

To refer to this object, please use the following persistent URL:

https://id.rijksmuseum.nl/20012382