Jacques Cartier's Manor House at Limoilou

C.W. Jefferys' notes about this picture from The Picture Gallery of Canadian History Volume 1

No portrait of Cartier, drawn from life, has been found. The profile portrait, seen in many books, and on prints and postage stamps, is an imaginative representation, the original of which is a painting made by Francois Riss, a French artist, in 1839, now in the town hall of St. Malo. It is possible that his work is based on an earlier portrait; but if this ever existed, it has been lost.

Although the familiar profile is not a genuine portrait, it expresses something of Cartier's character, and has fixed itself in popular appreciation as a typical representation of a Breton sailor.

The statue at St. Malo is, however, far superior as an imaginative conception, and vividly suggests the character and physical aspect of the rugged mariner.