Jean-Marc NATTIER (Paris, 1685-1766). Portrait of Louis, Dauphin of France, son of Louis XV. Oval canvas. Height 51 cm ; Width : 39,5 cm. Carved and gilt wood frame (accidents), French work of the Louis XV period. Provenance: Bought from Gaston Neumans on 2 July 1914 by Count X, then remained in the descendants. The eldest son of King Louis XV and Marie Leszczynska, Louis de France was born at the Château de Versailles on 4 September 1729. At the time of his birth, the royal couple had only daughters: Louise-Élisabeth, Henriette and Marie-Louise, so the arrival of a male heir was eagerly awaited. The announcement of his birth was celebrated with great pomp by the kingdom's ambassador to Rome, Cardinal Melchior de Polignac. The grand celebration was depicted by Giovanni Paolo Panini. The Musée du Louvre now holds this preparation of the fireworks and decorations for the celebration held in Piazza Navona, Rome, on 30 November 1729 to mark the birth of the Dauphin (Louvre, INV 415). The Dauphin lived through some of the key moments of his father's reign, notably the War of the Austrian Succession during the famous Battle of Fontenoy, and the attempted assassination by Damiens in 1757. A devout devotee, he chose to go against the grain of Louis XV, whose policies he disapproved of as much as his adulterous relationships, and became an important figure in the devout party. This sober and pious personality was not unlike that of his son Louis-Auguste de France, who would reign under the name of Louis XVI. Although he fathered three sovereigns, the dauphin Louis de France never ascended the throne, dying prematurely of tuberculosis in 1765 at the age of 36. Although he did not have the opportunity to demonstrate all his qualities, a number of portraits perpetuate his memory. The most notable portraits are in the Château de Versailles museum. One is a full-length standing portrait by Charles-Joseph Natoire in 1747 (Versailles, Musée du Château, MV 3791) and the other is a seated portrait by Anne-Baptiste Nivelon, painted in 1764, depicting him as a statesman in his study (Versailles, Musée du Château, MV 3793). Alexandre Roslin illustrated him in his military role as colonel of the Dauphin-Dragons regiment in 1765 (Versailles, Musée du Château, MV 6763). Less solemn representations painted around 1765, showing the Dauphin in bust form and also in Versailles, are known to have been painted by Jean-Martial Frédou (Versailles, Musée du Château, MV 4449) and Alexandre Roslin (Versailles, Musée du Château, INV.DESS 1164). Nattier painted two different portraits of the Dauphin: a three-quarter-length portrait exhibited at the Salon of 1747 (no. 58), the whereabouts of which are unknown today but which we know thanks to several copies, including the one in the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Dijon, and an unfinished bust portrait. The portrait in question is probably the one that appears under the heading "Mémoires de six portraits de la Famille royale, dont il n'y a que les têtes qui sont achevées, lesdits ouvrages ordonnés pour le service du Roi par M. de Tournehem, au sieur Nattier, années 1748 et suivantes" (A. N. OI 1932) under the heading "Portrait de Mgr le Dauphin , 500 [livres]". Under the heading "État général des portraits faits pour le service du Roy, tant sous les ordres de M. Orry que sous ceux de M. le marquis de Marigny, depuis 1742 jusqu'en 1762, par le sieur Nattier" (A. N. OI 1932) are mentioned "Six portraits de la famille Royale, dont il n'y avait alors que les têtes d'achevées, appréciées chacune la somme de 500 livres, scavoir : [...] une de Mgr. le Dauphin [...] [500 livres]". It seems that the portrait was "at Mlle Silvestre's" in 1761, probably Marie-Louise-Maximilienne de Silvestre, the Dauphine's reader. We would like to thank Mr Olafur Thordvalsson for his help in describing our painting. Expert : Cabinet TURQUIN - Stéphane PINTA