Image scanned from a transparency and color-corrected by Pat Cagney.

Portrait of a Woman

Artist Unknown

Dateca. 1615

MediumOil on panel

DimensionsOverall: 42 1/2 x 33 1/4 in. (108 x 84.5 cm)
Overall, Frame: 51 x 42 1/2 x 5 in. (129.5 x 108 x 12.7 cm)

ClassificationsEuropean art

Credit LineGift of Mr. Emile E. Wolf, A Friend of Norfolk

Object number55.1.1

Terms

Woman

On View

Not on view

DescriptionThis is an oil on wood panel, three-quarter standing figure portrait painting of a woman. She is in a gold embroidered dark dress with white standing collar ruff, white embroidered lace cuffs, pearl earrings, gold chain girdle, and matching bracelets on each wrist. Her cheeks are blushed but her look is somber and unsmiling. She wears two rings on her right index finger and a wedding ring on her left hand. She also wears a lace edged cap and is holding a tooled book with a red ribbon in her left hand. She is resting her right hand on embroidered white gloves with flowers in pink and a pink ribbon.

Label TextPortrait of a Man and Portrait of a Woman, ca. 1615 Dutch Oil on wood More than mere likenesses, portraits of this era projected the character, faith, marital status, and class of their sitters. Period viewers would have recognized this pair as a newlywed couple. The woman rests one hand on the wedding gloves her husband gave her. The prayer book in the other hand confirms her religious faith and the devotion of an ideal wife. The husband’s helmet suggests his military prowess and symbolizes the active life appropriate for a family protector and breadwinner. The couple’s expensive-looking clothes proclaim their lofty social position as they begin their life together. Gifts of Mr. Emile E. Wolf, a Friend of Norfolk 54.9.2 and 55.1.1