King, Queen and Dauphin of France
Kay represents Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette and their son Louis in low relief profile, facing left within a circle. His image derives from a portrait engraving of ca. 1791 that the French printmaker Augustin de Saint-Aubin based on a design by the sculptor Piat Joseph Sauvage. Many variations of that original were produced as mementos after the royal family were dethroned and, as if to underscore their changed status, no royal symbols appear. 1793, the year that Kay made his etching, Louis went to the guillotine in January, followed by his wife in October. Their young son, the putative Louis XVII, would survive in prison until 1795. Latin text inscribed below the portraits translates as "Thus passes worldly glory."
Artwork Details
- Title: King, Queen and Dauphin of France
- Etcher: John Kay (British, Dalkeith, Scotland 1742–1826 Edinburgh)
- Artist: After Augustin de Saint-Aubin (French, Paris 1736–1807 Paris)
- Artist: After Piat Joseph Sauvage (Flemish, Tournai 1744–1818 Tournai)
- Sitter: Louis XVI, King of France (French, Versailles 1754–1793 Paris)
- Sitter: Marie Antoinette, Queen of France (French (born Austria), Vienna 1755–1792 Paris)
- Sitter: Louis XVII (French, Versailles 1785–1795 Paris)
- Date: 1793
- Medium: Etching and stipple
- Dimensions: image: 2 1/2 x 2 1/2 in. (6.4 x 6.4 cm)
sheet: 4 5/16 x 3 1/4 in. (11 x 8.2 cm) - Classification: Prints
- Credit Line: Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1917
- Object Number: 17.3.756–1296
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
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