Joseph Chinard was one of the best and most influential sculptors working in France from the mid-1780s to the time of his death in 1813. This self-portrait demonstrates Chinard’s mastery of the medallion format, which set the stage for succeeding generations of French medalists, including David d’Angers. Chinard’s medallion is finely modeled with an economy of sculpted lines; the tousled curls of the sitter and the sensitive depiction of his features are elements associated with the later Romantic portraits of David d’Angers and Ingres. This extremely rare terracotta relief is the only self-portrait relief known to have been made by Chinard.