Gilded Louis XVI Bronze Frame With A Miniature Of Marie Antoinette - Signed

This miniature depicts Queen Marie Antoinette.

The main frame is adorned with a frieze of ovals. The guilloché background features four floral rosettes at the corners and, most notably, four gilded bronze appliqués depicting allegorical scenes of music and art, as can be seen in detail in image_0.png:

Upper left corner: A female figure reading or meditating.

Upper right corner: A female figure playing the harp.

Lower left corner: A female figure playing the triangle.

Lower right corner: A female figure holding an easel.

This is a 19th-century interpretation or copy inspired by the famous portraits of the queen painted by Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun in the 1780s. It features her characteristic features as well as the typical attributes of the “pastoral” fashion of the era, which she particularly favored at the Petit

Trianon: the high, powdered hairstyle with curls; the large straw hat adorned with blue ribbons and roses; and a simpler dress (in the style of a chemise dress).

This type of historical miniature portrait was a highly prized collector’s item in the late 19th century.