in 1622, maria de' medici, the mother of king louis xiii of france, commissioned peter paul rubens toaint for her new home in the luxembourg palace a series of more than 30 enormous canvases. they commemorated her four-year rule as regent after the assassination of her husband henry iv until louis came of age in 1614. even though maria wasn't really the queen at all, rubens employs the full apparatus of glamour, power, and glory to proclaim the greatness of her rule. king henry is shown being carried off to heaven, yet the action rushes towards maria, whose position in the painting is higher than the king's. odd, since he's the one going to heaven. but it's in the religious paintings