Jean-Baptiste de Belloy, cardinal

The portrait of Jean-Baptiste de Belloy, cardinal, was created in 1806 by Laurent Dabos and first shown at the Salon of 1806. It entered the collection of the Museum of the History of France at the Palace of Versailles, where it remains in the institution’s holdings. The work is catalogued under inventory numbers MV 4735, INV 3630, and LP 1934.

Its dimensions are 127.0 cm in height and 83.0 cm in width, and it depicts the cardinal in a seated position with a book and wig.

The portrait of Jean‑Baptiste de Belloy is housed in the Musée national des châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon at the Palace of Versailles, forming part of the Museum of the History of France collection. Its Joconde record lists the inventory numbers MV 4735, INV 3630 and LP 1934.

The work was first exhibited publicly at the Salon of 1806, where it was presented shortly after its completion. It has remained in the Versailles collections since its acquisition.

Laurent Dabos’ 1806 oil portrait presents Jean‑Baptiste de Belloy, then a cardinal and archbishop, seated in a darkened space. The cleric is dressed in a vivid red vestment edged with gold, his white wig neatly arranged, and he holds an open white volume in his left hand. Two gold medals adorn his chest, underscoring his high ecclesiastical rank.

Created during the post‑Revolutionary period, the work reflects the restored prominence of the Catholic hierarchy under the Consulate and Empire. Dabos, a pupil of François‑André Vincent, was active in portraiture of both religious and royal personalities, documenting the shifting power structures of late‑eighteenth‑ and early‑nineteenth‑century France.