I am certain this is the lifelong mistress of French King Louis XV, in her maturity.Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, Marquise de Pompadour, commonly known as Madame de Pompadour, was a member of the French court. She was the official chief mistress of Louis XV from 1745 to 1751, and remained influential as court favourite until her death in 1764. Beautifully painted, yet unsigned, the features favor all of her earlier grand paintings. She is housed in a c.1750-1830 French wood frame, and I cannot pin it to her lifetime or know for certain if it was painted as a memento or souvenir after her death in 1764, at Versailles. I suspect it could be either one. The pose is not one I have located as a painting after which it might have been done, though somewhere this painting sticks in my mind. Perhaps just because she is from my personal collection? Still, if anyone recognizes her pose, please email with artist, location. It will help me be more exact with a date.
Very good to excellent condition throughout. This one was very well cherished for centuries before I found her, and has been since. I love the elegance of her pose, the fine detail of the room and her hand as she writes. I'd wondered if the writing might represent signature, but it only looks like scribbling to me with magnifying glass. The wafer is splendid, no warp nor loss. Brilliant palette, and almost painted like an oil painting, but it is gouache, typical of the era. Frame is also in fine form. I did not test to see if her mat is gold or gold plated. The glow of it without any polishing suggests it is. I simply didn't wish to completely dislodge it in order to test, nor to scrape it for acid test. Measurements noted on photos.
