Pope Benedict XIV Presenting the Encyclical 'Ex Omnibus' to the Comte de Stainville, Later Duc de Choiseul, 1757, Pompeo Girolamo Batoni, Italian (Rome), Italian (Rome), 1708¡V1787, 50 3/4 x 70 5/8 in. (128.91 x 179.39 cm) (canvas)60 5/8 x 80 x 4 5/8 in. (153.99 x 203.2 x 11.75 cm) (outer frame), Oil on canvas, Italy, 18th century, In 1754, King Louis XV of France sent the comte de Stainville (later duc de Choiseul) to Rome to secure a decision from Pope Benedict XIV about disputes concerning the authority of the French courts, the Roman Catholic Church, and the Jansenists, a Catholic sect. The result was an encyclical, or papal letter, issued in 1756.