Carrier-Belleuse was one of the most sought after portraitists in the France of his day. His output of portrait busts was prolific, both of male and female sitters, though the latter were his predilection. The 18th century tradition of terracotta busts was a major source of inspiration for Carrier-Belleuse, and he too preferred the malleable material through which he was able to achieve a notable spontaneity and rich detailing.
The present fine bust is an unrecorded portrait, most probably of Carrier-Belleuse's favourite sitter and muse, Marguerite Bellanger. The delicate physiognomy greatly resembles the sculptor's known busts of Marguerite, in particular his early portrait of her as Venus (cf. pl. 75, op. cit.). Marguerite was the long-standing mistress of Napoleon III, renowned for her beauty and gentleness, qualities which Carrier-Belleuse has translated into terracotta with consummate skill. The present bust is a rare example of Carrier-Belleuse's effervescent and graceful style: the thin drapery closely following the sitter's celebrated poitrine and yet falling in folds over her shoulder and disguising the termination of the bust; the gentle tilt to the head; the smoothness of the face and the rich detail in the strands of hair and tiara.