Antoine Benoist was a French painter and sculptor and served as personal painter to King Louis XIV. He was accepted as a member of the Académie Royale, Paris in 1681.

Benoist’s fame grew after he exhibited forty-three wax figurines of the French “Royal Circle” at his residence in Paris. Thereafter, the king authorized the figurines to be shown throughout France. His work became so highly regarded that James II of England invited him to visit England in 1684. There he executed works of the English king and members of his royal court.

Today, Antoine Benoist’s work can be viewed among the collections of the Bibliothèque Nationale

Bibliothèque nationale de France

The is the National Library of France, located in Paris. It is intended to be the repository of all that is published in France. The current president of the library is Bruno Racine.-History:...

 in Paris and the Château de Versailles

Palace of Versailles

The Palace of Versailles , or simply Versailles, is a royal château in Versailles in the Île-de-France region of France. In French it is the Château de Versailles....

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External links

• Missouri Historical Society Archives, Benoist-Charleville Family Papers http://www.mohistory.org/content/LibraryAndResearch/DownloadFiles/Benoist-CharlevPapers.pdf
• Ann Gulbransen’s genealogy site http://www.gulbangi.com/5families-o/index.htm