Terracotta Bust Of The Dauphin Of France, Louis XVII, Son Of Queen Marie Antoinette And King Louis XVI , Houdon

Old terracotta bust representing the young Louis XVII. Sculpture of the child of the temple after Jean Antoine Houdon. Signed on the shoulder Houdon. 33cm in height. Very good condition Louis-Charles of France, better known as Louis XVII, born in Versailles on March 27, 1785 and died in Paris on June 8, 1795, is the second son of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette. Titled Duke of Normandy at birth, he became Dauphin of France in 1789 on the death of his older brother, then Prince Royal under the terms of the Constitution from 1791 to 1792. During the French Revolution, the royal family was imprisoned on August 10, 1792 at the Tour du Temple, then Louis XVI was executed on January 21, 1793. Louis-Charles was then recognized by the governments of the powers united against France and by his uncle, the future Louis XVIII, as the holder of the crown of France, under the name of “Louis XVII”. He died in captivity in 1795, at the age of ten. The possibility of its survival has long aroused the curiosity of certain authors.