Portrait of Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet
by RIGAUD, Hyacinthe, Oil on canvas, 72 x 59 cm
Over seventy when Rigaud painted his portrait, the bishop and tutor to the Dauphin was a celebrated preacher, whose funeral orations were published and enthusiastically circulated. Well aware of his worth, he wears a fortune in silk moir�. For all his air of benevolence, Bossuet was instrumental in shaping the French Catholic Church and the absolute monarchy.