Image: Joachim Murat (1767-1815) (A)

Description: The King of Naples is standing upright, draped in a sumptuous cloak lined with ermine. He holds in his right hand the black velvet cap adorned with white feathers which every person in charge of the court must wear. Joachim Murat wears the sword at his waist and holds the scepter with his left hand. The royal crown is placed on a cushion at its sides. Another version exists with a notable variant: a gilded military helmet decorated with white feathers placed on the piece of furniture on the left. This same helmet was to appear originally on the present painting and it is probably still in place, masked by a repainted, perhaps made by Étienne-François Haro at the request of the family, during the restoration of 1867. Étienne-François Haro (1827-1897) and his son Henri Haro (1855-1911) were famous merchants of color, experts, restorers and merchants of paintings, but also painters themselves.
Title: Portrait of Joachim Murat, king of Naples and of the Two Sicilies, by François Gérard.
Credit: Portrait du roi Joachim Murat époux de Caroline Bonaparte, sur le site de Sotheby's.com.
Author: François Gérard
Permission: Domaine Public.
Usage Terms: Public domain
License: Public domain
Attribution Required?: No