French school; early 20th century. "Louis XIV... Lot 51

French school; early 20th century. "Louis XIV receives the Persian ambassador". Oil on canvas. It presents faults and restorations. Measurements: 140 x 235 cm. The Persian embassy to Louis XIV caused a dramatic upheaval in the court of Louis XIV in 1715, the year of the death of the Sun King. Mohammed Reza Beg, or in French sources Méhémet Riza Beg, was a high-ranking official of the Persian governor of the province of Iravan (Erivan). He had been chosen by the Safavid Persian emperor, Sultan Husayn, for the mission and travelled with a large entourage, befitting a diplomat of a powerful empire. The scene of the Persian ambassador's entry into Paris on 7 February 1715 was described by François Pidou de Saint-Olon (1646-1720). Ten Persians or Armenians on horseback carrying long ornate rifles. Two Armenians in charge of the Persian king's gifts. Two pages of the ambassador, his master of ceremonies, his secretary and interpreter, etc. During several months spent in Versailles, Mohammed Reza Beg conducted negotiations aimed at establishing trade treaties between Persia and France, as well as specific agreements concerning the installation of consulates. He consulted with the French on possible joint military operations against the Ottoman Empire. But the negotiations were hampered by the poor health of Louis XIV. Nevertheless, Mohammed Reza Beg returned to Persia in the autumn of 1715 with treaties of trade and friendship between France and Persia. During his time in Paris, however, feverish speculation abounded about this exotic character, his unpaid bills, his luxurious but exotic lifestyle, the possibilities of love affairs, all focused on an affair of the beautiful but repeatedly abducted Georgian. Amanzolide, by M. d'Hostelfort, Amanzolide. The subject was popularised in the way it was depicted in literature and painting as can be seen in the study by Antoine Coypel, c. 1715. The historical theme of the painting, which is set in a glorious past related to the history of the painter's country, Spain, can be related to the pictorial Historicism of the 19th century, the main trend at the time, linked to the Academies of Fine Arts. The term "historicism" (Historismus) was coined by the German philosopher Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel. Over time, what historicism is and how it is practised has taken on different and divergent meanings. Elements of historicism appear in the writings of the French essayist Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) and the Italian philosopher GB Vico (1668-1744), and were more fully developed with the dialectics of Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831), influential in nineteenth-century Europe.