Maria Scotorv Regin et Franciae Dotaria, from "Heads of the Kings of England, and of several Famous Persons"
Medium
Etching and engraving
Dimensions
Sheet (trimmed): 11 1/2 × 7 1/2 in. (29.2 × 19 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Susan Dwight Bliss, 1958
Accession Number
58.549.102
Tags
Art Historical Context
This 1735 etching and engraving by George Vertue presents Mary, Queen of Scots as part of his ambitious series “Heads of the of England, and of Famous Persons,” published after Paul de Rapin de Thoyras’s historical text. The Latin title identifies her as “Maria Scotorum Regina et Franciae Dotaria,” highlighting her dual role as Scottish sovereign and dowager queen of France. Created nearly 150 years after her execution, the print forms part of an 18th-century project to give visual form to Britain’s royal and notable figures for a growing reading public. Vertue’s skilled use of etching and en...