ATTRIBUTED TO JUSTUS VAN EGMONT (1601-1674) PORTRAIT OF THE DUKE FRANCOIS DE LA ROCHEFOUCAULD (1613-1680), AUTHOR OF THE MAXIMS Prepared oak panel, two boards, not parqueted Inscribed on the reverse of the panel "Duc de La Rochefoucault / born in 16133, died in 1680 / he is the author of the Maxims - / painted by Mr Le Brun 1st painter / of Louis 14". Old restorations Att to J. van Egmont, Portrait of the Duke of La Rochefoucauld, oak panel, prepared, two boards, not parqueted, with restorations 23 x 16,80 CM - 9,1 x 6,6 IN. Provenance La Rochefoucauld Collection, Château d'Esclimont, then by descent. François de La Rochefoucauld, Prince de Marsillac, was a French writer, moralist and philosopher. At the age of fifteen, he married Andrée de Vivonne, daughter of the commander of Marie de Médicis' guards. He played an active part in the political intrigues of his time, particularly during the Fronde, alongside the Grand Condé. After his exile to his estates in Verteuil ordered by Louis XIV, he returned to Paris in 1656 and devoted himself to literature. He is famous for his Maximes, a collection of lucid and cynical reflections on human nature.