Jacob Bunel, son and pupil of François Bunel

François Bunel the Younger

François Bunel, a French historical painter, flourished at Blois in 1550. He was a distinguished artist, who painted many religious subjects for churches....

, was born at Blois

Blois

Blois is the capital of Loir-et-Cher department in central France, situated on the banks of the lower river Loire between Orléans and Tours.-History:...

 in 1568. He studied at Rome under Federigo Zuccaro

Federico Zuccari

Federico Zuccari, also known as Federigo Zuccaro , was an Italian Mannerist painter and architect, active both in Italy and abroad.-Biography:Zuccari was born at Sant'Angelo in Vado, near Urbino ....

, and on returning to France was made painter to the king, and worked with Pourbus

Frans Pourbus the younger

Frans Pourbus the younger was a Flemish painter, son of Frans Pourbus the Elder and grandson of Pieter Pourbus. He was born in Antwerp and died in Paris...

 and Toussaint du Breuil

Toussaint Dubreuil

Toussaint Dubreuil was a French painter associated with the second School of Fontainebleau...

 in the small gallery of the Louvre

Louvre

The Musée du Louvre – in English, the Louvre Museum or simply the Louvre – is one of the world's largest museums, the most visited art museum in the world and a historic monument. A central landmark of Paris, it is located on the Right Bank of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement...

, burnt in 1661. He was an artist of great merit, and held in much esteem by Henri IV

Henry IV of France

Henry IV , Henri-Quatre, was King of France from 1589 to 1610 and King of Navarre from 1572 to 1610. He was the first monarch of the Bourbon branch of the Capetian dynasty in France....

, who employed him at Fontainebleau and other royal residences. He painted 'The Descent of the Holy Ghost' for the chapel of that order in the church of the Grands Augustins

Augustinians

The term Augustinians, named after Saint Augustine of Hippo , applies to two separate and unrelated types of Catholic religious orders:...

 at Paris, and for the church of the Feuillants

Feuillant (monks)

The Feuillants were monks of the Cistercian order who established an abbey in the diocese of Rieux in 1145.The abbey was named Notre-Dame-des-Feuillants and the name came to be applied to the monks too. Pope Gregory XIII established the Feuillants as a separate congregation in 1589 under their...

 an 'Assumption of the Virgin,' now in the Museum at Bordeaux

Musée des beaux-arts de Bordeaux

The Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux is the fine arts museum of the city of Bordeaux, France. Established in 1801 it is one of the largest art galleries of France outside Paris. The museum is housed in a dependency of the Palais Rohan in central Bordeaux. Its collections regroup paintings,...

, both of which pictures have been highly praised. Philip II of Spain

Philip II of Spain

Philip II was King of Spain, Portugal, Naples, Sicily, and, while married to Mary I, King of England and Ireland. He was lord of the Seventeen Provinces from 1556 until 1581, holding various titles for the individual territories such as duke or count....

, by whom likewise he was esteemed, commissioned him to paint for the cloister of the Escorial

El Escorial

The Royal Seat of San Lorenzo de El Escorial is a historical residence of the king of Spain, in the town of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, about 45 kilometres northwest of the capital, Madrid, in Spain. It is one of the Spanish royal sites and functions as a monastery, royal palace, museum, and...

forty pictures, all of which have now disappeared. He died in Paris in 1614.