New research has cast doubt on the authenticity of one of the French Queen’s most recognizable images.
A famous childhood portrait, which for years was believed to depict the French Queen Marie Antoinette, may actually be of her older sister, Maria Carolina. This is the conclusion reached by Oxford University Professor Catriona Seth, as reported by the BBC.
The work in question is a 1762 drawing by the Swiss artist Jean-Étienne Liotard. For a long time, this drawing shaped historians’ perception of the future Queen of France’s appearance and childhood. However, Seth noticed inconsistencies—specifically, a medal on the girl’s dress, which Antoinette could not have been wearing at that time, as she only received it several years later.
The scholar suggests that a simple mix-up of names occurred: the portrait previously attributed to Marie Antoinette actually depicts Maria Carolina, while another drawing from the same series, conversely, does indeed represent the younger sister.
The researcher also noted that in the second portrait, the girl is holding a rose and wearing earrings identical to those later seen in confirmed images of Marie Antoinette. These details helped to definitively revise the previous attributions.
The Director of the Museum of Art and History (MAH), Marc-Olivier Wahler, emphasized: “While these portraits have been exhibited for over 250 years, it is now particularly interesting to see Marie Antoinette as she really was, rather than confusing her with her sister.”
Marie Antoinette was born in Austria in 1755 and was married to the future King of France, Louis XVI. In 1793, during the French Revolution, she was executed by guillotine at the age of 37.
