Portrait of a Woman

This woman's identity is unknown, but her elegant dress and jewelry identify her as a member of the well-to-do burgher class. Though her pose is rigid and formal, her outward gaze and slightly pursed lips enliven her presence. Prominent on her right hand is a ring; she is perhaps recently married, but rings in Holland during the 1600s also served as tokens of affection.

On the right side of the sheet, the elaborately flourished signature of Cornelis Visscher dominates. Using fine, hatched lines, Visscher captured the subtle creases and folds of the sitter's outfit; by contrast, he used the blank page to define her tasseled white collar. Like most of his important portrait commissions, this large drawing is on expensive vellum and was executed in black chalk. Most likely created as an independent work, the drawing could be hung on the wall, framed.