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The deuxième antichambre served as waiting room for courtiers waiting to attend the king's lever in the chambre du roi next door. This room was also known as the antichambre des Bassans on account of the number of paintings by the northern Italian artists, Jacopo Bassano, that were displayed on the walls (Piganiol, 119). Over the mantelpiece, the famed "Noli me tangeres" by Lambert Sustris was displayed. In 1701, the deuxième antichambre and the chambre du roi were combined to form the salon de l'oeil de boeuf, which became the main antechamber to the king's new bedroom (Verlet, 211).
Taking is name from the oval window located in the south cove of the ceiling, the salon de l'oeil de boeuf features a gilt-stucco running frieze that decorated the cove of the room's ceiling and features a trellis-work background on which are groups of dancing putti. It is the decoration of the cove that heralds a transition from the formalistic style that was used in the decoration of the grand appartement du roi and the Hall of Mirrors to a more relaxed style that anticipated the style Louis XV (Kimbal, 1944, 50-61). Louis XIV spared no expense in decorating this room. Mirrors, “The Fainting of Ester” and “Judith with the head of Holofernes” by Veronese[4] hung as pendants, and gilt furniture all contributed to making this one of the most sumptuous rooms in the appartement du roi (Félibien, 339; Verlet, 212).
When Louis XIV moved into the chambre du roi in 1684, the following room was designated at the salon du roi or the salon où le roi s'habille. For 17 years, this room served as venue for the ceremonies that surrounded the life of the king, such as the lever and the coucher (Verlet, 213). |
