The Sentiments of the Nation

Currently not on view

The Sentiments of the Nation

1778

Jean François Janinet (French, 1752–1814) After a watercolor by Jean-Baptiste Marie Huet (French, 1745–1811)

Jean-François Janinet's tender family portrait commemorates the eagerly anticipated birth of Marie-Antoinette and Louis XVI's first child, Marie-Thérèse-Charlotte (1778-1851). Here we see the queen holding the infant girl between an oval portrait of her mother, the Empress Maria Theresa, and a marble bust of her husband. At the left of this heart-shaped composition, a white spaniel and an anchor are symbols of fidelity and hope; at right, an altar symbolizes love. When reissued three years later in celebration of the birth of a male heir, Louis-Joseph-Xavier, the only alteration to the plate was the addition of the Dauphin's birth date, October 22, 1781, to the engraved text below.

Currently not on view

Object Details

Titles:

The Sentiments of the Nation
Les Sentiments de la Nation

Date:

1778

Artists:

Jean François Janinet (French, 1752–1814) After a watercolor by Jean-Baptiste Marie Huet (French, 1745–1811)

Medium:

Color wash-manner engraving printed from four plates

Dimensions:

Sheet (cut within platemark): 11 × 7 7/8 inches (27.9 × 20 cm)

Classification:

Prints

Credit Line:

Gift of Mrs. Morris Hawkes, 1944

Accession Number:

1944-80-69

Geography:

Made in France, Europe

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Currently not on view