Where can I see Afternoon Tea at the Temple?

Afternoon Tea at the Temple is held by Museum of the History of France.

What movement is Afternoon Tea at the Temple?

Afternoon Tea at the Temple is associated with Rococo painting.

Artwork

Afternoon Tea at the Temple

Afternoon Tea at the Temple is an oil painting by the Rococo painting artist Michel-Barthélémy Ollivier. It dates from 1771 and is held in the collection of the Museum of the History of France.

About this work

Subject & Meaning

By portraying a celebrated child prodigy in a private concert, the work celebrates youthful genius and the role of elite salons in nurturing artistic talent.

The painting shows an elegant interior where members of the Prince de Conti’s court are gathered for an English-style tea service. A young boy, identified as the child Mozart, plays a harpsichord while the assembled nobility listens. The scene includes a tea set, a harpsichord, and figures dressed in fashionable attire, indicating a refined domestic setting.

This gathering symbolizes the Enlightenment ideals of sociable erudition and cross‑cultural taste, highlighting the aristocracy’s patronage of music and the fashionable adoption of tea drinking. By portraying a celebrated child prodigy in a private concert, the work celebrates youthful genius and the role of elite salons in nurturing artistic talent.

Technique & Style

Executed in 1771, this work is an oil painting on canvas. The composition depicts an interior scene within the Salon des Quatre Glaces at the Temple, featuring the court of the Prince of Conti gathered for tea while listening to a young musician. The imagery includes specific details such as a harpsichord, a boy, and members of the nobility situated in a living room setting.

The painting's physical dimensions are recorded with slight variations across records, measuring approximately 53 to 54 cm in height and 68 to 70 cm in width. Historically, the piece was exhibited at the Salon of 1777 and remains part of the French State collections housed at the Palace of Versailles.

History & Provenance

The work titled Afternoon Tea at the Temple was painted by Michel-Barthélémy Ollivier in 1771. It entered the collection of the French State and was later housed in the Department of Paintings of the Louvre, the Museum of the History of France, and the Palace of Versailles. The painting was first exhibited at the Salon of 1777 and is documented in the Joconde database under inventory numbers INV 7007 and MV 3824.

The painting is held by the Louvre in Paris under inventory number INV 7007. It entered the national collections as part of the French State holdings and is displayed at the Musée du Louvre, département des Peintures.

It was shown at the Salon of 1777, as recorded in the work’s Wikidata entry.

Overview

Michel‑Barthélémy Ollivier’s 1771 oil painting Afternoon Tea at the Temple presents an interior scene of genteel leisure. Set within an expansive, richly paneled room, the composition centers on a young boy at a harpsichord while surrounding figures sip tea, embodying the cultivated atmosphere of late‑18th‑century aristocratic life.

Context

The scene reflects the 1770s French aristocracy’s fascination with leisure activities that combined artistic performance and social ritual. Such interior genre paintings offered viewers a glimpse into the private world of the court, reinforcing ideals of elegance and cultivated taste.

Artist & collection

Artist

Michel-Barthélémy Ollivier

Michel-Barthélémy Ollivier (24 August 1712 – 15 June 1784) was a French painter and engraver. He specialized in historical and genre scenes.

Museum

Museum of the History of France

Continue through works from the same source collection.