The painting appears, after cleaning, to be an autograph replica of a picture, the original of which was painted in Brussels in 1782 in free imitation of Rubens's 'Chapeau de Paille', which Vigée Le Brun had seen in Antwerp. It was exhibited in Paris in 1782 at the Salon de la Correspondance. Vigée Le Brun's original is recorded in a private collection in France.
On loan to the exhibition 'Self Portrait: Renaissance to Contemporary' at the National Portrait Gallery, London from October 2005 to January 2006, and the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney from February to May 2006.
