Jean-Baptiste ISABEY (Nancy, 1767 - Paris, 1855) Portrait of Joachim Murat (1767-1815), King of Naples, in uniform with the cordon of the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour and two other ribbons Enamel on metal Signed and dated 'Isabey 1812' centre right in gold Old gold bracelet clasp with Austrian and Viennese hallmark (1806-07) Portrait of Joachim Murat (1767-1815), king of Naples, enamel on metal, signed and dated, by J.-B. Isabey 1.37 x 1.18 in. 3.5 x 3.0 cm Provenance: Anonymous sale; Fontainebleau, Osenat, 8 November 2009, no. 378 ; Pierre Jourdan-Barry Collection (1926-2016); Then by descent; Private collection, Belgium Bibliography: Pierre Mollier, "Joachim Murat Grand Master in his Kingdom", Franc Maçonnerie Magazine, 13 October 2015 (online) (Restorations, scratches and chips at the bottom) The famous miniaturist painted on enamel, but his works in this genre are very rare" (Henri Clouzot, Dictionnaire des miniaturistes sur émail, Paris, 1924, p. 110). Clouzot cites the portrait of the Duchess of Bassano in this technique by Isabey, signed and dated 1811, now in the Musée Cognacq-Jay, Paris. The same Clouzot confirmed four years later (La Miniature sur émail en France, Paris, n.d. [c. 1928], p. 158): "Of the two great miniaturists of the imperial period, one, Isabey (1767-1855), worked very little in enamel. Clouzot illustrates the portrait of the Duchess of Bassano (pl. X in reg. p. 160) and mentions "two beautiful enamels from the collection of Prince Murat", representing Joachim Murat and his son Achille, both signed and dated 1812, like our portrait of Murat. A pair of enamels signed by Isabey, dated 1811, depicted Emperor Napoleon I and his second wife Marie-Louise (Sotheby's sale, London, 8 June 1987, no. 70). In the catalogue for the exhibition "Jean-Baptiste Isabey (1767-1855), portraitiste de l'Europe", Malmaison and Musée des Beaux-Arts de Nancy, 2005/2006, p. 110), the author finds it hardly surprising that fewer than half a dozen enamels by Isabey are currently listed. Jean-Baptiste ISABEY (Nancy, 1767 - Paris, 1855) 3.5 x 3.0 cm The famous miniaturist painted on enamel, but his works in this genre are very rare" (Henri Clouzot, Dictionnaire des miniaturistes sur émail, Paris, 1924, p. 110). Clouzot cites the portrait of the Duchess of Bassano in this technique by Isabey, signed and dated 1811, now in the Musée Cognacq-Jay, Paris. The same Clouzot confirmed four years later (La Miniature sur émail en France, Paris, n.d. [c. 1928], p. 158): "Of the two great miniaturists of the imperial period, one, Isabey (1767-1855), worked very little in enamel. Clouzot illustrates the portrait of the Duchess of Bassano (pl. X in reg. p. 160) and mentions "two beautiful enamels from the collection of Prince Murat", representing Joachim Murat and his son Achille, both signed and dated 1812, like our portrait of Murat. A pair of enamels signed by Isabey, dated 1811, depicted Emperor Napoleon I and his second wife Marie-Louise (Sotheby's sale, London, 8 June 1987, no. 70). In the catalogue for the exhibition "Jean-Baptiste Isabey (1767-1855), portraitiste de l'Europe", Malmaison and Musée des Beaux-Arts de Nancy, 2005/2006, p. 110), the author finds it hardly surprising that fewer than half a dozen enamels by Isabey are currently listed.