Artwork

Erzherzogin Gregoria Maximiliane (1581-1597), Tochter von Karl II. von Innerösterreich, im Alter von 11 bis 12 Jahren in ganzer Figur

Erzherzogin Gregoria Maximiliane (1581-1597), Tochter von Karl II. von Innerösterreich, im Alter von 11 bis 12 Jahren in ganzer Figur is an oil painting by the Early Baroque Italian artist Jakob de Monte. It is held in the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum.

About this work

Subject & Meaning

The work is a full-length portrait depicting Archduchess Gregoria Maximiliana of Austria, the daughter of Charles II of Inner Austria.

The work is a full-length portrait depicting Archduchess Gregoria Maximiliana of Austria, the daughter of Charles II of Inner Austria. Created in 1592, the painting captures the subject at the specific age of eleven or twelve years old. As a formal portrait from the late sixteenth century, the image serves to document the likeness and status of the young Habsburg archduchess during her childhood.

The composition emphasizes her royal lineage and identity within the Inner Austrian branch of the dynasty, presenting her in a manner consistent with courtly representations of juvenile nobility of the period.

Technique & Style

The portrait is executed in oil paint on canvas, with the sitter shown in full figure at a reduced scale of 110 × 181 cm. Handling is consistent with late sixteenth-century court portraiture: the modeling of the face and hands is softly blended, while the costume and accessories are rendered with crisp linear definition against a neutral background. Stylistic features include a restrained palette of dark, somber tones enlivened by the white ruff and silver-gold embroidery of the gown, and a frontal, hieratic posture that emphasizes the subject’s social rank. The composition’s clarity and the precise delineation of textures suggest the influence of contemporary Habsburg portrait conventions.

History & Provenance

The portrait of Archduchess Gregoria Maximiliane was created in 1592 by the artist Jakob de Monte. Executed in oil paint on canvas, the work depicts the daughter of Karl II of Inner Austria at the age of 11 to 12. The painting measures 181 cm in height and 110 cm in width.

Historically associated with the collection at Schloss Ambras in Innsbruck, the artwork is currently held by the Kunsthistorisches Museum.

The painting is held in the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum, with its location recorded at that institution in Vienna. According to the Wikidata record, it forms part of the museum's holdings, having been created in 1592 by Jakob de Monte as a full-length portrait of Archduchess Gregoria Maximiliana of Austria.

No specific inventory or accession number is documented in the available sources. Likewise, the provided records do not mention any exhibition history, display venues, or loans for the work, leaving its curatorial presentation beyond its current museum home unrecorded.

Context

The painting of Archduchess Gregoria Maximiliana of Austria was created by Jakob de Monte in 1592 as a full-length portrait commissioned for the Tyrolean court. It entered the Kunsthistorisches Museum's collection in Innsbruck and remains displayed there as part of its early Baroque portraiture holdings. The work exemplifies courtly representation in late Renaissance Central Europe, reflecting both the political stature of the Habsburg archduchess and the stylistic conventions of court portraiture in the Holy Roman Empire's peripheral territories.

Its dimensions of 181 cm by 110 cm establish it as a formally ambitious depiction of youthful nobility.

Overview

This 1596 oil portrait by Jakob de Monte captures Archduchess Gregoria Maximiliana of Austria at the age of 11 to 12. The full-figure depiction showcases the young noblewoman in opulent attire, conveying her elevated social standing.