Hand patinated reproduction. Mold made from a print of the original work on display at the Château de Malmaison and Bois Préau.
Even though it was modelled during the Consulate, this bust of Napoleon after the model by Chaudet was adopted as the official portrait of the Emperor until 1810. Several hundred copies were made in Carrara marble, and then reproduced in biscuit porcelain by the Manufacture de Sèvres from 1805 onwards.
It came in two sizes: the bigger models, of which there were very few, were reserved for leading personalities, while the smaller ones were used as gifts of secondary importance.
This is one of the smaller models, and it was made in 1808. The original is in Rueil-Malmaison in musée des châteaux de Malmaison et de Bois-Préau.
