Medallion Portrait of Mlle de Fontanges
1832
Eugène Devéria’s 1832 sketch captures the delicate beauty of Marie Angélique de Fontanges, a mistress of King Louis XIV who died tragically young at age twenty. Notice the cascading ringlets framing her face; legend has it she accidentally invented a massive fashion trend when she tied her messy hair up with a ribbon after a hunting ride, a style the King loved so much it was named the 'fontange' in her honor. This drawing is actually a copy of a famous enamel portrait by Jean Petitot, as noted by the French inscription 'D'après l'Email du Musée.' It’s a lovely example of Romanticism looking back with nostalgia at the 'Siècle de Louis XIV' (Century of Louis XIV) written at the top.
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