The Representation of Two Iberian Queens: Luisa of Guzmán and Mariana of Austria

Abstract

This essay will examine and compare some portraits of the Spanish queen Mariana of Habsburg (1634–1696) with others of Luisa of Guzmán (1613–1666), the first Braganza queen of Portugal, in order to explore and identify the roles they played as brides and queen consorts. It also proposes to ascertain how the identity of both women was constructed to portay them as queens. Mariana’s portraits are numerous and varied but the same cannot be said of those of Luisa, as few portraits of this queen remain due to the destruction caused by the Lisbon earthquake in 1755.