After Antoine-Denis Chaudet (1763-1810), Italian, probably Carrara, circa 1810-1814

This beautifully executed portrait bust of Napoleon follows the celebrated model by Antoine-Denis Chaudet (1763-1810) which was conceived in plaster in 1799 and cut in marble in 1804. The model is said to have been Napoleon's favourite portrait and became the official portrait of the Emperor, being widely disseminated both in marble and also in Sevres copies. When Napoleon's sister, Elisa Baciocchi, became Princess of Lucca and Piombino in 1805, the marble quarries of Carrara came under her authority and she installed Lorenzo Bartolini as director of the sculpture academy in Carrara as well as creating the Banca Elisiana to fund sculptors. Some 1200 versions of Chaudet's models were created under Elisa's authority, and were distributed throughout the Empire (although many were destroyed after Napoleon's fall). It is probable that the present bust was one of the marbles carved at Carrara during this period. It is distinguished by the beautifully carved laurel wreath which is an addition to the original model and recalls another of Chaudet's portraits of Napoleon at Fontainebleau (inv. no. M.M.40.47.734.1).

Interestingly there is a similar, though more elaborate bust after Chaudet's model and signed by Bartolini at Versailles (inv. no. MV1599). In this adaptation of the model, the sitter wears the Iron Crown of Lombardy (Napoleon was crowned King of Italy in 1805), with the wreath placed above. The carving of the wreath, as well as the fillet straps adorned with heraldic emblems, are similar to the present bust. The existence of the Versailles bust underscores the likelihood that the present marble likewise originated from the Carrara workshops under Bartolini's supervision circa 1810-1814.