The Royal Family, Six Pastels, Late 18th Century

Suite of Six Oval Bust Portraits of the Royal Family: King Louis XVI (1754–1793), Queen Marie Antoinette (1755–1793), Marie-Thérèse of France (1778–1851), Louis-Joseph of France (1781–1789), Dauphin of France; Louis-Charles of France (1785–1795), known as Louis XVII; and Madame Élisabeth (1764–1794).

The King is depicted here after a portrait painted by Joseph-Siffred Duplessis around 1774–1776, wearing the sash and badge of the Order of the Holy Spirit. The Queen is shown in bust-length, her hair styled high and adorned with a headdress featuring a tiara, pearls, and feathers, probably based on the portrait by Gautier-Dagoty from 1775 — one of the first portraits of the new Queen of France — with different versions known (a variant is held at the Antoine-Lécuyer Museum in Saint-Quentin). Madame Royale is depicted as a child, shown in bust. The first Dauphin is portrayed wearing the sash of the Order of the Holy Spirit — a rare portrait of the time. The second Dauphin is also shown wearing the ribbon of the Order of the Holy Spirit and the Cross of the Order of Saint Louis, after a portrait painted by Alexandre Kucharski circa 1792 and preserved at the Château de Versailles. Madame Élisabeth appears in bust-length, her hair styled up with flowers, in the manner of Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun.

A beautiful and homogeneous set coming from the same private collection. The frames are giltwood and of the period. The pastels are on stretched parchment mounted on frames, which explains some slight deformations over time. Minor wear and a few small holes here and there are also noted.