Arnold SCHEFFER 1839-1873 The King Henri III, his boy-friend and his court Painting, oil on canvas Signed lower right: "Arnold Scheffer / fecit" Painting: 65 x 82cm Beautiful frame: 76.5 x 93 cm Very good condition, a small discreet restoration (see on the back) Circa 1865 Note: Arnold Scheffer exhibited several paintings on the theme of Henri III at the Salon, which allows us to place the painting circa 1865 (1863: Henri III receives the embassy of the Leaguers in Chartres; 1864: The Duchess of Nemours demands from Henri III the body of her son the Duke of Guise; 1868: Funeral procession and ceremony in honor of the Duke of Guise, assassinated in Blois ; 1869: Henri III at Saint-Cloud, beginning of the siege of Paris, 1589). Our painting is perhaps a sketch for the painting in the Salon of 1864 ("The Duchess of Nemours demands from Henri III the body of her son the Duke of Guise") with a white "innocence" dress. History : according to a label on the back of the painting, the painting was hung in the bedroom of Ernest Renan's wife in Tréguier (Brittany).     Cornélie Renan-Scheffer, wife of Ernest Renan, was the daughter of Henry Scheffer, brother of Arnold Scheffer. The painting then remained in the family of Ernest Renan.