Transported as a rare object of distinction: the gift-giving of Clemence of Hungary, Queen of France

Late medieval royal women frequently journeyed from their homelands across Europe, marrying into other households. They maintained their ties and demonstrated their status by sending and receiving sumptuous objects. This study analyses the gift exchange surrounding Clemence of Hungary, a princess born in Angevin Naples, who married the Capetian king of France, Louis X. Her body was a diplomatic gift to the French court - one that brought the two families together. But the gift-giving that created ties did not end with her marriage. The testament and inventory made at the time of her death in 1328 offer descriptions of many of the gifts, and are considered here along with surviving works of art from the period to visualise the queen's objects. These gifts united Clemence with far-flung relatives separated by advantageous marriages and often sent messages or overtly promoted herself and her natal or marital families.