Exhibition labels & didactics - National Gallery of Victoria
Exhibition labels & didactics - National Gallery of Victoria
Exhibition labels & didactics - National Gallery of Victoria
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FRANCE<br />
Chamberlain’s key with the monogram<br />
<strong>of</strong> Napoleon, King <strong>of</strong> Italy<br />
Clef de chambellan au chiffre de Napoléon,<br />
Roi d’Italie<br />
Empire period 1804–15<br />
gilt bronze, flax, silver and gold thread<br />
Fondation Napoléon, Paris<br />
Donation Lapeyre inv.1119<br />
Within the Imperial Household, aided by the<br />
First Chamberlains – the Tuileries Palace<br />
had no fewer than sixty-five <strong>of</strong> these – the<br />
Grand Chamberlain directed services<br />
pertaining to the Emperor’s bedchamber<br />
and court ceremony, controlling access to<br />
his apartments and his meeting schedules.<br />
The symbol <strong>of</strong> <strong>of</strong>fice <strong>of</strong> the chamberlain was<br />
a silver-gilt or gilt bronze key sewn onto the<br />
right pocket <strong>of</strong> a red velvet, silk-embroidered<br />
outfit. This key symbolically opened one<br />
special door, that <strong>of</strong> the Emperor’s private<br />
realm.<br />
179<br />
© COPYRIGHT<br />
This document remains the property <strong>of</strong> the <strong>National</strong> <strong>Gallery</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Victoria</strong> and must be returned upon request. Reproduction in part or in whole is prohibited without written authorisation.
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