Old Masters
Old Masters
DUTCH SCHOOL, 1586 | PORTRAIT OF AN OLD WOMAN, AGED 53, HALF-LENGTH, WEARING A BLACK COSTUME WITH A WHITE CAP
Lot Closed
June 11, 02:40 PM GMT
Estimate
8,000 - 10,000 USD
Lot Details
Description
DUTCH SCHOOL, 1586
PORTRAIT OF AN OLD WOMAN, AGED 53, HALF-LENGTH, WEARING A BLACK COSTUME WITH A WHITE CAP
inscribed and dated upper right: ...tat. 53 / an0 1586. (see fig. 1)
oil on panel
panel: 28 by 23¼ in.; 71.1 by 59.1 cm.
framed: 32¾ by 38 in.; 31.2 by 96.5 cm.
Acquired by present owner, late 20th century.
This anonymous portrait of a 53 year old woman was rendered by a distinct and confident hand. An inscription in the upper right corner dates it to 1586 (fig. 1), and in style and handling it comes close to the output of Dirck Barentsz (1534-1592). In particular his portrait of a woman, possibly Giertruida van Neck, recorded in the collection of Gevers van Kethel en Spaland, Noordwijkerhout.1
Though largely active in Amsterdam, Barentsz. was a true Reniassance man, travelling to Italy to study under Titian and corresponding largely in Latin. Among his most famous works is his Banquet of Eighteen Guardsmen of Squad L, also known as The Perch Eaters, painted in Amsterdam in 1566 and today in the Rijksmuseum, which features a woman in the upper right corner donning a similar cap and costume as the present sitter.2
1. J.R. Judson, Dirck Barendsz., Amsterdam 1970, p. 115, cat. no. 43, reproduced fig. 15. Oil on panel, 70 by 58 cm.