Dominique Vivant Denon. Portrait of Diego Velázquez

This 1790 etching with a portrait of the Spanish painter Diego Velázquez (1599–1660) was made by Dominique Vivant Denon (1747–1825), a French printmaker, writer and diplomat who later became one of the founders of museum practice in France.

During the Revolution Denon lived in Italy, where he worked as an engraver and studied the history of art. In 1798 he accompanied Napoleon on the Egyptian campaign and headed the art department of the Institute of Egypt in Cairo. On his return to Paris in 1804 Denon became director of the Imperial Museum, later renamed the Louvre.

Velázquez is shown bust-length, turned three-quarters to the left, in a garment with a large turned-down collar and a small round cap; he has long wavy shoulder-length hair and an upturned moustache, against a light, neutral background. The etching is printed on laid paper.