45 - French School, c. 1595, circle of François BUNEL

French School, c. 1595, circle of François BUNEL The Procession of the League Panel Height: 58 cm Width: 114 cm Provenance: - Auction, Paris, June 30, 2000, lot 40. This painting depicts one of the last processions organized in Paris on February 4, 1593, by the League, an alliance of the most hardline Catholics. Henry III, allied with King Henry of Navarre, was assassinated on August 1, 1589, in Saint-Cloud during the Catholic League’s siege of Paris. This faction, which governed the city, organized spectacular processions of thousands of clergy, soldiers, and children armed with arquebuses to oppose the accession of the Protestant Henry IV in the early 1590s. His conversion in 1613 put an end to the unrest. Against this backdrop of political and religious tensions, Paris became the scene of spectacular demonstrations intended to affirm the Catholic faith and opposition to the new sovereign. The theme of the League’s procession was skillfully exploited by propaganda hostile to the Parisian League and inspired an entire series of paintings initially attributed to François Bunel (1522–1599), an artist loyal to Henry of Navarre from the very beginning of his political career. Several versions and variations of this historical scene are now cataloged in French public collections, notably at the Museum and Estate of the Château de Pau [1], the Palace of Versailles (MV 3281) [2], and at the Valenciennes Museum of Fine Arts (P. 46.1.506) [3]. The painting by François Bunel (1522–1599), held at the Carnavalet Museum (P2538) [4], as well as the one offered for sale at Tajan in Paris on December 16, 2021, lot 57 (French School, c. 1600, workshop of François II Bunel, The League’s Procession Leaving Notre-Dame, panel, 71 x 119 cm) [5], are the closest matches. [1] https://chateau-pau.fr/collection/objet/procession-de-la-ligue#:~:text=The%20scene%20depicts shows%20one,%20a%20Protestant,%20Henry%20IV. [2] https://collections.chateauversailles.fr/#/query/1a5055ed-79d2-49b9-abe6-e457d8d4e4ec [3] https://pop.culture.gouv.fr/notice/joconde/06380000532 [4] https://pop.culture.gouv.fr/notice/joconde/M1104320026897 [5] https://www.tajan.com/auction-lot/ecole-francaise-vers-1600-atelier-de-francois-ii_c44430a902 Expert: Stéphane Pinta, Turquin firm (available by appointment at the expert’s office)