The Discovery of Jan Claasz
Cornelis Troost1738
Mauritshuis
Den Haag, Netherlands
Troost painted various scenes from the popular play “Jan Claasz or the Supposed Servant Girl”. The play’s finale is an accumulation of farcical situations.
Saartje is on the verge of marrying the boring Reinier. What no-one knows is that she is secretly in love with Jan Claasz. In order to prevent the wedding, the couple have hatched a plot: disguised as a servant girl, Saartje’s lover creeps into her bed at night. On the morning of the wedding, Saartje’s parents discover the deceit and fly into a rage. To save the situation, Saatje pretends to faint, whereupon her parents agree to a marriage between Saartje and Jan Claaz. All’s well that ends well.
- Title: The Discovery of Jan Claasz
- Creator: Troost, Cornelis
- Date Created: 1738
- Provenance: Jeronimus Tonneman, Amsterdam; his sale, Amsterdam, 21 October 1754 (Lugt 845), nos. 5-7 (for 515 guilders to De Bruyn); Jan Jacob de Bruyn, Amsterdam; Jan Isaak de Neufville Brants (1768-1807), Amsterdam; his son Jan Isaak de Neufville Brants (1800-1828); his sale, Amsterdam, 28 March 1829 (Lugt 11974), nos. 3-5 (for 100 guilders [3 and 4] and 50 guilders [5] to De Vries for the Mauritshuis, together with inv. nos. 179, 183-185, 191-193); purchased, 1829
- Type: Painting
- Medium: Pastel, gouache; paper on canvas
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