Why Is Marie Antoinette So Popular? The French Queen Still Sells
She died more than two centuries ago, but her influence remains everywhere.
A 1783 portrait of Marie Antoinette by court painter Louise Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, in the collection of the Palace of Versailles.
Source: Public Domain
Before she was sent to the guillotine in 1793, 37-year-old Marie Antoinette couldn’t have imagined that more than two centuries later, she’d still be one of the most famous women in the world. The French queen’s jewels and furniture command record-breaking prices at auction; her porcelain and palace fabrics are reproduced and hawked by homeware brands; and her likeness is used on everything from expensive candles to throw blankets. She’s been the inspiration for a plethora of bestselling books, feature films, jazz and rap songs and fashion shows.
If you need proof that the Biden-era embrace of quiet luxury has given way to something decidedly more ostentatious and maximal, look no further than Marie Antoinette’s renewed visibility. In the age of influencers, the Queen is a case study in spectacle and optics. “She was constantly on parade, constantly performing and being watched, and she was scrutinized far more than celebrities are today,” says Sarah Grant, a senior curator at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, which is currently hosting a show devoted to the queen’s style and legacy.