A portrait of the Emperor in his “grand habillement du Sacre” [grand coronation robes]

In 1805, Gerard was commissioned to paint an official portrait of the Emperor in his “grand habillement du Sacre” [grand coronation robes]  for the “Hôtel du Ministre des Relations Extérieures” [the Hôtel de Galliffet, a town mansion where Talleyrand officiated as Minister of Foreign Affairs]. Numerous copies of this portrait were made at the artist’s workshop, under the painter’s supervision, destined for every political residence outside France, both diplomatic and consular.

This three-quarter-length version of that portrait shows the Emperor standing in full coronation dress crowned with golden laurels, holding in his right hand a sceptre bearing an eagle and wearing the necklace of the Légion d’Honneur. On the left the hand of justice and a globe surmounted by a cross are placed on a cushion, and behind on the right we can see the Imperial throne [click on links to see details].