Charles Auguste Emile Duran, known as Carolus-Duran (French, 1837-1917), "Portrait of a Gentleman, likely James Biddle Eustis (1834-1899)", 1898, oil on canvas, signed, dated and inscribed "Paris" upper right, "Paul Foinet, Paris" canvas stamp en verso, "Maple's Depository" labels on stretcher, 24 in. x 19 3/4 in., framed, overall 28 1/8 in. x 23 7/8 in. x 2 1/4 in. Provenance: Collection of Minnie Ewan Eustis, Paris; thence by descent. Note: While the definitive identity of this sitter remains a mystery, there are clues in the Eustis family history and a reputed relationship with the artist, Carolus-Duran, that point to United States senator from Louisiana and Ambassador to France James Biddle Eustis (1834-1899) as the likely subject. The portrait of this distinguished gentleman hung for many years in the Paris residence of Minnie Ewan Eustis, who claimed a husband by the name of Charles M. Eustis, born of American parents in Bath, England. However, no record can be found on this personage or of a marriage between the two. It is believed Ms. Eustis, an opera singer by profession, took the name of a patron, James Biddle Eustis, who was a fan of classical music with a daughter, Marie Eustis, a contemporary of Minnie Ewan Eustis. More evidence that indicates James Biddle Eustis is the sitter for the portrait are records that the sitter and artist were acquainted and served on the commission for the “Prix de Paris,” a joint Franco-American initiative to award an annual stipend to young American students of art and music studying in Paris. According to Dr. William Hauptman, a preeminent Carolus-Duran scholar, although there is no record of the sitter in this work: “There are indices that put [Eustis] and the painter together and in art historical terms that is quite a great deal. Their meetings in Paris and their apparently working together would certainly have induced Eustis to have his portrait painted by Carolus Duran whose reputation at the time was huge.” Hauptman also states that Carolus Duran “…was known to flatter his sitters, sometimes making them appear younger in years.” This fact is another significant justification since the portrait appears to be a man in his late forties, while Eustis would have been sixty-four in 1898.Regardless of the sitter’s identification, the canvas offered here is indicative of the beautiful and detailed portraits Charles Auguste Émile Durand painted of the French, British and American aristocracy and upper-class society in the late 19th century. His popularity was unquestioned, and his influence can clearly be seen in the work of his most well-known student, John Singer Sargent.

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