[3][4] In an effort to improve public perception of the queen, later that year, Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun was commissioned by Louis XVI[1][2] to paint an official portrait depicting Marie Antoinette sympathetically.

[3][4] To further engage the public's sympathy, Vigée Le Brun left an empty cradle in the place of the queen's youngest child, Sophie-Hélène-Béatrix, who died shortly before the painting was completed.

[1] However, due to Marie Antoinette's unpopularity at the time and fears that the painting would be damaged, Vigée Le Brun refused to send it.

[3] Her elder son, Louis-Joseph, the Dauphin at the time, is near the empty cradle, intended for her younger daughter, Sophie-Béatrice, who died before the painting's completion.

[5] This last reference serves to emphasize Marie Antoinette's image as a mother, placing her own children above material concerns like jewels, especially in the wake of the Diamond Necklace scandal.