Penning met het portret van Hendrik IV 1720

Curator: Look at this print by Bernard Picart, created in 1720. It’s housed here at the Rijksmuseum, and it depicts a medal, or rather, multiple views of what appears to be a commemorative coin of Henri IV. Editor: My initial impression is of formality and authority. It's like looking at historical seals—there’s a definite attempt to convey power and legacy through meticulously rendered symbols. Curator: Exactly. The baroque style engraving highlights a historical moment with immense cultural implications. It depicts, in precise detail, medals created to honor Henri IV of France. Notice the dates "1602" that suggest it refers back to events from the early 17th century. Editor: The laurel wreaths, the crown, the lettering...each element seems carefully selected. Crowns often signify divinely sanctioned rule, and laurels tend to signal victory or achievement. It makes me curious about the specific event these coins commemorate, doesn't it? Curator: Well, Picart created this print decades after the reign of Henry IV, and historical records demonstrate that Henri, while attempting to suppress powerful noble factions in 1602, actively created propagandistic and commemorative visual works. Prints like these ensured his legacy continued and took hold. It suggests an active role of imagery in legitimizing political authority. Editor: And this legacy is deliberately constructed, isn't it? By using images familiar and understood, like the crowns and portraits that emphasize authority, he created powerful tools for remembrance and reinforcement of a ruler's legitimacy long after he was gone. It is interesting how a person’s identity morphs into cultural memory and political power, even. Curator: Precisely. These objects played an important part in crafting collective memory, solidifying an image that fit particular historical and political agendas. So many questions about how leaders strategically build legacies and images that last forever are generated from a print like this! Editor: It makes one think about our present too, about the lasting images we consume every day, about who we remember and why. Thank you for highlighting this connection between political image and the art historical record.