The portrait of Miss O'Marphy

Mr. Marnier-Lapostolle, the well-known industrialist, brought a lawsuit before the 3rd chamber of the court against the heirs of Jacques Seligmann, the no less well-known antique dealer.
The industrialist had instructed Mr. Seligmann to sell a painting by Boucher on a joint account and received a deposit of 60,000 francs from the upcoming sale.
In conflict with the State over the Chartreuse affair, Mr. Marnier neglected to repay the sum within the prescribed time. Mr. Seligmann believed he was authorized to sell the painting at auction, at the Drouot auction house, by the ministry of Mr. Beaudoin, auctioneer.
Mr. de Nolhac, curator of the Palace of Versailles, considers Boucher's canvas to be one of the master's most beautiful paintings. It represents Miss O'Marphy, mistress of Louis XV, lying on her stomach in a gallant negligee.
There is a replica of this work in the Louvre.
The canvas sold was signed, but the sales prospectus and the posters announced it as "attributed" to Boucher.
Mr. Marnier, seized of the prospectus, saw in it a maneuver intended to depreciate the painting with a view to buying it back at a low price.
He tried to stop the sale, but the auctioneer ignored it, and the painting, estimated by Mr. Seligmann at at least 120,000 francs, was sold for 44,500 francs.
After pleadings by Messrs. Léouzon-Leduc, Charles Viraut and Loeb, the court instructed the experts Rambosson and Renard to establish the authenticity of the painting.