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Louis XIV

1678–81
Not on view
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.
Coysevox represented Louis XIV as few of his subjects or foreign tourists would have encountered him: dressed in armor. The king’s serene features below the long wig convey the majesty of an official portrait. By 1693 the imposing bust had been placed in a niche on the north wall of the Ambassadors’ Staircase used by overseas diplomats at Versailles. The bust left no doubt whose palace they had just entered.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Louis XIV
  • Artist: Antoine Coysevox (French, Lyons 1640–1724 Paris)
  • Date: 1678–81
  • Medium: Marble
  • Dimensions: 47 1/4 × 37 3/8 × 13 3/8 in., 661.4 lb. (120 × 95 × 34 cm, 300 kg)
  • Classification: Sculpture
  • Credit Line: Musée National des Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon (MV 789)
  • Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts