Portrait of an enigmatic Roman Woman, signed D.Martens, 1829, Danish sc.

Portrait of a rare psychological depth of a young Roman woman, probably preparatory study of a large-format work.
H. D. Martens born in Kiel, Germany, was formed around 1815 in Copenhagen by W. Eckersberg, head of the School recognized as "The Golden Age of Danish Painting"
Passionate mainly about architecture, Martens  joined Rome in 1825 where he was protected by B. Thorvaldsen, at the height of his glory as a sculptor, in his immense workshop, near the Barberini Palace, which was the home of the many Danish artists, in a dream of Italy, in love with light and ancient classicism.
There, in 1826, Martens painted his masterpiece "The visit of Pope Leo XII to the Thorvaldsen workshop" acquired by King Frederick VII and now preserved by the Thorvaldsen Museum.
The tropism of the "Grand Tour" experienced by Northern artists is the subject of the book "Sehnsucht nach Arkadien" Ulrich Schulte-Wülwer' Boyens 2009,
Our oval portrait signé& and dated appears as the original work of a rectangular variant perfectly represented p. 150, ill. 77