About this artwork

The woman’s physiognomy and facial expression can be found in four other studies of an old lady’s head, all attributed to Jordaens. The drawing entered the collection with an attribution to the Dutch School, due to an inscription on the verso bearing the name of the Dutch artist Hendrick Goltzius (1558-1617). The discovery of Jordaens’s name on the verso, however, supports an attribution to him. It has been suggested that the sitter is Jordaens’s mother-in-law, but this has not been widely accepted. The realistic way in which the woman is depicted makes it likely that Jordaens drew this model from life.

Updated before 2020

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Jacob Jordaens

Jacob Jordaens