Posterity has been kind to the king who embodied the French Renaissance, making him a legend.
€68,156
Eleven letters from François I to Jean de Selve and Pierre de La Guiche, ambassadors to England, signed “Francoys”, January-April [1515].
Paris, Drouot, May 15, 2013. Maigret (Thierry de) auction house. Mr. Bodin.
François I (r. 1515-1547) was a handsome man, the victor in the battle of Marignano and a patron of the arts and letters during the lavish Renaissance, which flourished under his reign. History has endowed him with a glory never tarnished in the collective imagination by his defeat at Pavia, capture and ruinous expenses. His popularity can be measured by the memories recreated in the 19th century, spreading the knight-king image everywhere, from troubadour paintings to chocolate molds. The few actual testaments to his rule—coins and documents—are much more reliable, as they can help historians shed light on his leadership qualities.
Prices shown include the Buyer's Premium.
€484
Georges-Gustave Toudouze (1877-1972), François I, le roi chevalier (François I, the Knight-King), former Furne/Boivin & Cie bookstore, 1909, quarto, color cover illustration by Albert Robida.
Paris, Drouot, May 25, 2012. Ferri & Associés auction house. Mr. Lecomte.
€1,001
Probably c.1830. Two tinned brass chocolate molds depicting Claude of France and François I, h. 44 cm (17.32 in).
Paris, Drouot, June 19, 2013. Ferri & Associés auction house. Ms. Houze.
€50,000
Pierre Doré (1500?-1569), L’Image de vertu demonstrant la perfection & saincte vie de la bienheureuse vierge Marie… (The Image of Virtue Demonstrating the Perfection & Holy Life of the Blessed Virgin Mary), Paris, Pierre Vidoué, 1540, bound for François I by the “Pecking Crow Binder” workshop.
Paris, Rossini Room, November 12, 2015. Alde auction house.
€766
French troubadour school, first half of the 19th century. François Ier accordant à Diane de Poitiers la grâce de son père (François I Granting Diane de Poitiers a Pardon for her Father), oil on canvas, 58.5 x 40.5 cm (23.03 x 15.94 in).
Paris, Rossini Room, December 9, 2016. Rossini auction house. Mr. Dubois.
€915
Lyon, François I (r. 1515-1547). silver teston, 13th type, bust of the king in armor facing right, closed crown, crowned ecu de France, flanked by crowned “F”s, 9.54 g (0.33 oz.), extremely fine to mint condition.
Paris, Hôtel Ambassador, October 19, 2016. Alde auction house. Mr. Crinon.
€60
After Titian, 18th century. François Ier, black engraving, stamp of the Comte de Paris' sale at Drouot in 2000, 26 x 21.5 cm (10.23 x 8.46 in).
Blois, March 22, 2015. Pousse-Cornet auction house.
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