The Sobieskis and Stuarts. Portrait of Clementina Sobieska, Marie-Geneviève Bouliard, early 19th century

after Antonio David (1727)
oil on canvas, early 19th century
The Museum of King Jan III’s Palace at Wilanów

The present work is a late copy of a portrait which Clementina commissioned from Antonio David in 1727, but which differs significantly from earlier portrayals. Rich costumes and jewellery have been replaced by subdued tones, and the modest dress, dark veil, and prayer book symbolise piety and the renunciation of worldly goods. 

She was also in mourning for her uncle Konstanty Sobieski, who died that year. Her royal rank is indicated by a closed crown and ermine collar. However, beside the crown is a prayer book which Clementina holds between her fingers. 

This portrait was produced during the two-year marital crisis between King James and Queen Clementina, one cause of which was James’ insistence on the unusually early, and Protestant, governorship of their elder son. Clementina, with the decisiveness appropriate for the granddaughter of King Jan III, took the difficult decision to separate from her husband, and left the Palazzo del Re for the convent of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere (on the other side of the river Tiber). She spent more than a year and a half there, devoting herself to religion and fasting, and only rejoined her husband’s court in July 1727. 

The original portrait by David was sent to Euphemia Drummond, Duchess of Melfort, who lived in France. It is now lost, but several disappointing copies have survived, some commissioned by Clementina herself as gifts to various convents with which she was associated. However, the work exhibited here, by Marie-Geneviève Bouliard (1763–1825), though late, is a relatively well-executed copy of the original.