Infared photograph of detail of Jacques Marquet, Baron de Montbreton de Norvins		Jacques Marquet, Baron de Montbreton de Norvins
The drapery on the left of the painting—more rapidly painted than the detailed damask in the background—was added to conceal a bust resting on a tall pedestal, clearly visible in this infrared photograph. It has been suggested that the bust depicted Napoleon I's son, the king of Rome, who was born in March 1811. After the Bourbons returned to power in 1814, such an imperial homage would have been detrimental to the ambitious artist, so Ingres may well have painted it out at that time. Back

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