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Miniature Portrait of César François Cassini de Thury
(18th and 19th Centuries )
Nattier was regarded as one of the foremost portrait painters at the court of Louis XV (reigned 1715-1774). He occasionally turned to miniature painting, as demonstrated by this likeness of Cassini de Thury (1714-1784), a distinguished astronomer and director of the Paris Observatory, shown seated at his desk taking a pinch of snuff from a gold box.
The composition for this miniature was taken from a 1745 pastel portrait of Louis Duval de l'Épinoy by Maurice-Quentin de La Tour (Museu Calouste Gulbenkian, Lisbon). Only the face has been altered. Recently both the 19th-century identification of the sitter and the attribution to Nattier have been questioned.
Inscription
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Marqui de Biron; William T. Walters, Baltimore, ca. 1893, by purchase [no. 511 in Walters Catalogue of 1899]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1894, by inheritance; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Exhibitions
| 1976 | Maryland Heritage: European Art at the Time of the Revolution. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
| 1959 | Age of Elegance: The Rococo and its Effects. Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore. |
Conservation
| Date | Description | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| 4/6/1959 | Loan Consideration | examined for loan |
Geographies
France (Place of Origin)
Measurements
3 1/8 x 2 11/16 in. (8 x 6.9 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by William T. Walters, ca. 1893
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
38.101