This work in the Tansey Collection is one of the extremely rare signed miniatures by the miniaturist Villis.1 He is not mentioned in any encyclopaedia of artists, and his first name and family were not known until October 2025.2 He was probably active in Basel and Bern around 1800, as several of his miniatures are housed in the historical museums of these cities. During the Napoleonic Empire, he worked in Belfort and Vesoul.3 Several of his miniatures are kept in the historical museums in these cities.4 The original rendering of the eyes, mouth, and hair, and the green tones in the shadows of the flesh parts and the background support the attribution to Villis. The sitter’s expression suggests that in Basel the artist kept the company of the miniaturist Jean-Baptiste Soyer, who was working there at around 1800; he may even have been Soyer’s student for a time. The elegantly dressed young man is wearing a golden earring and an unusual pin on his white shirt showing a golden key. He probably did not really wear this piece of jewellery but chose it as a symbol in his portrait. The key presumably expressed the gentleman’s feelings for the recipient of the miniature; it represented permission to open the heart of a loved one.5 B. P.