Portrait du pape Pie VII

Napoleon crowned himself Emperor in Notre-Dame in December 1804, and he had summoned the pope from Rome to lend the ceremony the church's blessing. Pius VII came, sat through it with resigned patience, and stayed on in Paris for months. In February 1805 David painted him from life at the Tuileries, partly to thank him for the long journey. The pope sits in red velvet and white linen, holding a slip of paper that names him a patron of the fine arts, his face gentle and a little tired. David also worked him into the huge Coronation canvas, where he raises a hand to bless the crowning. In life he had done no such thing. He only watched Napoleon place the crown on his own head.