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The Messenger;'t Kan Verkeren'

Jan Verkolje1674

Mauritshuis

Mauritshuis
Den Haag, Netherlands

An officer and a young lady are sitting at a table playing backgammon. Just as she is about to throw the dice, a messenger appears holding a letter. Is he bringing good news or bad? The concerned look on the officer’s face suggests the worst.

Verkolje was a master at depicting gleaming satin. The back of this beautiful dress, full of pleats, seams and creases, is a good example of his skill.

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  • Title: The Messenger;'t Kan Verkeren'
  • Creator: Verkolje, Jan
  • Date Created: 1674
  • Physical Dimensions: h59.7 cm x w53.4 cm
  • Provenance: Possibly Pieter van Winter, before 1807; possibly Anna van Winter, 1807-1877; Van Loon Collection, Amsterdam; Van Loon Collection sold en bloc to Gustave de Rothschild in 1877; Alfred de Rothschild, London; Victor de Rothschild, London; sale London (Sotheby’s), 19-22 April 1937, no. 19 (for 1800 pounds to art dealers S. and R. Rosenberg); Fritz Mannheimer, Amsterdam, until 1940; bought by Mühlmann, 1940 (for 25,000 guilders); Dienststelle Mühlmann, The Hague; restituted to the States of the Netherlands on 15 April 1946; Dutch Art Heritage Foundation (Stichting Nederlands Kunstbezit), on loan to the Mauritshuis, 1948-1960 (inv. no. NK 3111); transferred, 1960
  • Type: painting; oil
  • Medium: canvas
Mauritshuis

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