Portrait of Süßkind Stern

Süßkind Stern was a merchant and entrepreneur, a money changer and banker and also traded in pearls and operated salt mines. It was common in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries for people to practice multiple professions.
Süßkind was highly esteemed in the Judengasse for his charity, and he was elected to numerous honorary offices. He was for instance a member of the two burial societies that made all arrangements for the burial of the dead and provided support for the bereaved families. This honorary position is regarded as one of the highest in a Jewish community.
This painting which shows Süßkind Stern, is in many ways extraordinary. It is from 1671 and the oldest known portrait of a resident of the Judengasse. Süßkind doesn’t show himself in this portrait in a representative way, in the contrary, he wears a simple coat and a hat that was usually worn at home. Nothing recalls his status in the community, nor emphasizes on his wealth and profession. Only his beard shows that he is Jewish and the white collar referes to him as a scholar and of his high level of education. In the upper corner of the painting is a white star, the emblem of the house in which Süßkind lived and thus a reference to his Frankfurt origins.