3-097-722 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Philip III, King of Spain, seated, c1615. Philip III (1578-1621), pious and fond of hunting, is often described as listless and uninterested in affairs of state. The court of Philip III was known for its luxury and ostentation, reflected to some extent in the elaborate attire the monarch wears in this portrait. He sits in a brocade chair, dressed in white herringbone-patterned doublet and padded hose with gold buttons, his decorated cap resting on a writing desk. On a gold chain hangs the Order of the Golden Fleece. The seated portrait had become established in the previous century as a suitable representation for high ecclesiastical dignitaries, and also, thanks to Titian, as a variant of the state portrait, a distinctive image of Habsburg majesty that alluded to wisdom and prudence as virtues befitting the sovereign, especially suited to the administration of justice, one of the principal tasks of government.