Portrait of a girl aged 13

Dutch School 1629

Oil on panel

52 ¾ x 33 2/3 inches; 115 x 85.5 cm

Provenance:

 

David sale, Brussels, 16th May 1898, as by Moreelse;

Anonymous sale, Paris, Hotel Drouot, 30th April 1900;

European Private Collection.

 

This touching portrait was painted in 1629, and, according to the inscription, shows a girl at the age of 13. Despite the sitter’s youth, the portrait is most likely a marriage portrait. It would probably have had a pendant of the sitter’s husband, which would traditionally have hung to the left of the present picture, facing towards it. The portrait is notable for the typically specific Dutch rendering of details in the costume, and the highly realistic depiction of the lace ruff.