A tiny gem, perhaps all that remains to mark a life of this very distinguished gentleman who looks a great deal like French King Louis XVI, don't you agree? Fashioned for his time, c.1760-1780s, he wears the long powdered wig of a avacate (attorney or judge) or simply a courtier in the time of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette. The painting is tiny, elegant, and done on paper rather than the thin natural wafer of most. It just feels like a quick little painting (and again, of Louis XVI), perhaps done as a political gift, of a love token?
Very good to excellent condition for age and type, painted in gouache on paper/card, it has remained very well protected under the original slightly convex cover glass. The frame has substantial age, some of it showing, but it is the perfect display for this tiny gem portrait. Look again, the painting is only 1 3/8" x 1 1/8". The face of this gentleman holds that much detail and personality in a space less than 1/2 and inch in height. Fascinating art!
