Fine French portrait in miniature, artist signed, dated 1797 and we have 3 possibilities based on date:
The CHEREAU, originally from Blois, artists since the end of the 17th century, most of the engravers and print dealers in Paris.
The identity of the miniaturist Chereau, who exhibited at the Salon of 1793 and who then lived in Paris, at the Palais Egalité, is not clearly established. As Schidlof supposes, there is a Chereau ignored by dictionaries but that it is registered in the archives of freemasonry, active in 1805.
Also was found, Antoine-Guillaume Chereau, painter from Vienna (Austria), aged from 22 years old, enrolled in 1781 as a student of M. Lépicié at the Academy school, living in Paris.
BIBLIOGRAPHY: N. Bouchard Lemoine "Painting and miniature"
E. Benezit. Volume III. "Dictionary of painters,
sculptors, draftsmen and engravers ".
SAUR. "Alligmeines Kunstler-Lexicon"
An elegant gentleman, framed in 18k gold locket, hinged and with a plating of chestnut colored hair on reverse side, also under original glass (cracked). It is painted in gouache on thin panel, typical of the genre. It retains the original paper backing.
Very good to excellent condition for age and type. The painting is superb, a few microscopic bits of dust showing up as whitish dots (sorry), but we've greatly enlarged this 2 1/8" diameter locket framed miniature. Gold has been acid tested. I see no gold mark, but did not examine inner lip, as it seems fragile at hinge and I just put it back together after cleaning glass, it's a gorgeous old thing. One small area of mishap to the gold front at about the 8 o'clock position. Back cover glass, which is original, has a full crack as you can see. The plaited hair within is undisturbed, however. I wish we knew who he is, and his story!
