The Midnight Appointments: Marquis de Lafayette Bust
This bust of the Marquis de Lafayette was created at the National Porcelain Factory of Sevres after the work of sculptor Jean Antoine Houdon. Houdon was renowned for his busts of famous politicians of the time. This bust is made of unglazed porcelain and rests atop a long, dark, marble column. The factory was established in 1738 and became the royal factory in 1759. It remains closely tied to the French state today and is run by the Ministry of Culture. A French aristocrat, Lafayette is renowned for his allegiance with the United States during the American Revolutionary War and his friendships with George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Alexander Hamilton, among others. Lafayette's 1824-1825 visits to the White House and to Washington, D.C., were among the highlights of his triumphal tour of the United States, as people honored the last surviving French general of the Revolutionary War and one of the last remaining living links to the Revolutionary Era.
- Artist
- National Porcelain Factory of Sevres
- Date of Work
- August 23, 1986
- Medium
- sculpture
- Credit
- The White House Historical Association/ White House Collection
