Portrait of a young lady, half-length, wearing a hat trimmed with flowers and holding a rose garland

A previously unpublished and very early work by the artist. The sitter is depicted holding a rose garland, a popular attribute in fashionable society portraits at this period, which alluded to country festivals at which the most beautiful girl in the village was awarded a crown of roses. The costume of the anonymous sitter is very similar to that of the Marquise de Becdelièvre (née Emilie de Coutances), whose portrait by Vigée Le Brun was sold at Sotheby's, New York, 7 October 1994, lot 131.

We are grateful to Neil Jeffares and Joseph Baillio for their help in preparing this catalogue entry.