FONTAINE, actif au troisième tiers du XVIIIe siècle.
Portrait... Lot 20
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FONTAINE, actif au troisième tiers du XVIIIe siècle.
Portrait of King Louis XVI.
Rare rectangular copper plate, with a medallion portrait of King Louis XVI represented in left profile bust, surmounting a cartouche inscribed in Latin "Ludovico XVI Fr. et Nava. Regi Optimo Comitia Burgundiae", commissioned by the States of Burgundy to celebrate the completion of the Canal of this province.
Circa 1787 or early 19th century remake.
H. 21 x W. 17.5 cm.
Related works
Two other examples of the period, in gilded bronze, are currently known, completely identical and of the same dimensions: the one offered by the States of Burgundy to the King (private collection), and another incorporated into the base of a monumental clock (Cercle Interallié collection, see illustration opposite).
Fontaine made a first version of this medallion in 1774 (period examples in several French museums), of which only the head was modified in the 1787 model. At the latter date, the King's engraver Duvivier created a commemorative medal of the same event, with a different profile but with the same legend as Fontaine's plaque.
Literature
- Exhibition catalogue, "Jean-Baptiste Nini, 1717-1786: d'Urbino aux rives de la Loire, paysages et visages européens", Château de Blois, 27 October 2001-27 January 2002, Milan, 2001.
- Jean-Baptiste Nini, his life, his work. 1717-1786", André Storelli Storelli, Tours, 1896.
- Daniel Alcouffe in exhibition catalogue, "Louis XV. Un moment de perfection de l'art français", Hôtel de la Monnaie, Paris, 1974, p. 599.
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