Henri-Benjamin Constant de Rebecque (1767–1830)

Henri-Benjamin Constant de Rebecque, or Benjamin Constant, was a political activist and a prolific writer. In the eighteen-twenties and thirties, he influenced liberal movements and revolutions across Europe, Brazil, and Mexico. Constant took a government position in the French First Empire under Napoleon until 1802, when he and the infamous Madame de Staël, who was his mistress, fell out of favor, forcing the couple to flee to Germany. After the Bourbon Reconstruction, Constant returned to Paris and defended constitutional monarchy as a member of the Council of State. He was considered the most eloquent proponent of the new liberalism that engulfed French politics between 1827 and 1830. David d’Angers, admiring both Constant’s eloquence and his views, made this medallion soon before Constant’s death. The medallion is a transitional piece that suggests David’s mature Romantic style in the large-scale medallion format in which the bust extends to the medal’s upper and lower edges in high relief that would become identified with the sculptor. David contrasts Constant’s long, densely curled locks of hair, lavish sideburns, and tousled cravat with the solemn poise of his expression. Constant’s shock of unruly white hair is common to many depictions of him and makes the figure recognizable.