3-097-972 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Maria Amalia of Saxony, Queen of Naples, c1739. Maria Amalia (1724-1760) was Queen of Spain from 10 August 1759 until her death in 1760 as the wife of King Charles III. Previously, she had been Queen of Naples and Sicily. She is known for her influence upon the affairs of state. The painting reveals her royal status through the ermine mantle and the royal crown resting on a cushion, although the motif that truly unveils the subject's personality is the medallion pinned to her chest, which she holds delicately in her hand in a highly significant gesture. It depicts the face of Charles III, Sovereign of Naples, whom Amalia married in June 1738. The portrait can be identified as the painting that the future Charles III had promised his parents on May 5, 1739. It was to be sent a few months later, as they waited for the smallpox scars to disappear. '...the Queen's features, after the smallpox, have lost much of their original natural delicacy'.