Madame du Barry

Madame du Barry’s haughty beauty inspired several artists, notably Augustin Pajou (1730-1809), a French neoclassical sculptor, author of this bronze bust belonging to the Fine Arts Collection of the Museum of Angra do Heroísmo, which made him famous as a masterful portraitist of the female figure. Even today, it is possible to admire busts of Madame du Barry by Pajou in some of the world’s most important museums. Born Marie-Jeanne Bécu (1743-1793), she became Countess du Barry (or Bary) through marriage and was one of the official mistresses of King Louis XV of France. The illegitimate daughter of a seamstress and an unknown father, her studies were paid for by Monsieur Billiard-Dumonceaux, her mother’s lover. A woman of great beauty, intelligence and refinement, she eventually became a luxury courtesan under the wing of Count Jean Baptiste du Barry, thus establishing contacts with the aristocracy. After the death of Madame de Pompadour, Louis XV’s favourite, the Duke of Richelieu introduced her to the king and, in order to make her position as royal concubine viable, her lover, Jean Baptiste du Barry, obtained a noble title for her, marrying her to Count Guillaume du Barry, his brother. She retained her power until the death of Louis XV, after which she was removed from court and sent to a convent, from which she escaped, returning to court life. Accused of treason during the Reign of Terror, she was imprisoned by revolutionary troops and died by beheading in 1793.