Emperor Francis I

Martin van Meytens as a court painter had the permanent task of painting the portraits of the Emperor and the Queen, as well as of the various members of the imperial family. Since the decoration of various residences and institutes, gifts to foreign sovereigns, aristocrats and diplomats and various festive occasions made necessary several copies of the imperial portraits, these courtly representations were made in series by the workshop, and Meytens himself played only a minor or greater part in their execution.