Prince Hercule-François, Duc d'Alençon

French 16th Century

National Gallery of Art

A clean-shaven, pale-skinned man wearing all white, a black-speckled white fur cape, and brimless black hat stands and looks at us in this full-length, vertical portrait painting. The man’s body and face are angled to our right, but he looks at us from the corners of his brown eyes under dark, curved brows. He has a slightly bulbous nose, the suggestion of a cleft chin, and his thin, pink lips are closed. His brown hair is cut short under the cap, which has a high crown. The hat is lined with jeweled gold medallions and pearls around the bottom edge, and the barbs of the white feather flicker like a busy flame. The lace-edged ruff, which is pleated in figure eights, hugs his chin and the back of his neck. The high-collared, white, long-sleeved jacket is textured in narrow, horizontal bands. A narrow black belt decorated with silver trim and pearls loops around his waist, and a sword hangs from the far hip. The white-on-white patterned breeches puff out at the waist and are gathered high on the thigh, like puffy shorts. He wears smooth, cream-white stockings and the same color slippers. The hip-length fur cape hooks over the far shoulder, and that hand rests on the pearled hilt of a thin sword. His other elbow is bent, and he holds a pair of gold and brown-colored gloves in that hand. The first two fingers are extended to lie along the fabric of his pants. The wall behind the man is earthy green and the floor a rosy peach. Gold text in the upper left corner of the painting reads, “FRANCOIS DVC DALENCON EAGE DE XVIII ANS LE XIXE IONR DE MARS AN 1572 FILS DE HENRŸ II DE CE NO ROŸ DE FRANCE.”