Cardinal René de Birague (1506–83)

The kneeling statue was made for the funeral chapel of Birague in the church of Sainte-Catherine-du-Val-des-Ecoliers in Paris, after the contract concluded between the daughter of the deceased, a cousin and Germain Pilon on February 1, 1584. The broad design of the tomb, which was destroyed when the church was condemned in 1783, is known to us from a drawing made in the 17th century. It included bronze sculptures flanked by columns.

The contract tells us that the statue was “painted, coloured and filled out accordingly and to the life”. The cloak was painted red, since Birague, a native of Milan who had taken French nationality in 1565 and in 1573 was appointed chancellor of France, took holy orders after his wife’s death and became a cardinal in 1578.