Portrait of a Nobleman with a Falcon, large octagonal miniature [France, mid-16th century]

miniature, 250x200mm, vellum, reverse blank, pigment losses especially towards edges, some marginal retouching of the blue background and small worm holes, probably cut into octagonal shape in the 19th century when framed

The elegant portrait depicts a youthful man with a falcon perched on his left hand while holding a stick used for training in his right. The identity of the sitter is not known but the hunting falcon characterises him as a member of the upper classes. He was certainly not a falcon tamer as he is not wearing a glove to protect his hand. The young man is dressed in noble clothes, notably the bonnet and the gown with a doublet neckline that comes into fashion in the 1490s and that does not change much until the 1520s. Most attractive is the serene depiction of the man that is matched by the falcon wearing a hood to keep him calm.

Portrait miniatures developed out of the techniques of the miniatures in illuminated manuscripts, and were popular among 16th-century elites, mainly in England and France. France had a strong tradition of miniature portraits centered on the court. The earliest French miniature painters were Jean Clouet (d. c.1540), his son François Clouet (d.1572), and others. In the mid-16th century, these became larger images that were produced notably by François Clouet and his followers.