Van der Werff's Portraits of himself and Others.—Pieter van der Werff has portraits of W. B. Schefers and his wife, of Johannes Texelius and of himself. The painter stands with his elbow on a stone balustrade, dressed in grayish blue embroidered with gold. A brown velvet cloak is thrown over his shoulder, and he holds his palette and brushes in his left hand.
An Admiral and his Wife, by Van den Tempel.—A. van den Tempel has An Admiral and his Wife, in which the former is dressed in gray and silver, and his wife in black and pink and jewels. She holds an orange in her hand; and in the distance a negro is seen with a dish of oranges. In the background a lifted curtain of crimson velvet reveals a warship from which a gun is being discharged.
A Portrait by Zimmerman.—J. W. G. Zimmerman has a Portrait of Mr. Joost van Vollenhoven, Burgomaster of Rotterdam in 1864-81, dressed in the robes of office, his right hand holding a letter and his left resting on some books on the table.
Other Portraits of Interest.—Other portraits of interest are Adriaen Backer's Portrait of a Man; Hendrik Berckman's Portrait of Admiral Adriaen van Trappen; Portrait of Himself, by Gijsbertus Johannes van den Berg, and Portrait of his Wife with her son on her knee; C. Bisschop's Portrait of Prince Henry of the Netherlands, in the costume of the Royal Yacht Club; Ferdinand Bol's Portrait of a Woman (two), and Dirk Van der Waeijen; Cornelis Cels's Gijsbert Karel, Count of Hogendorp; Cornelius Janszoon van Ceulen's Portrait of a Gentleman, and Portrait of a Young Woman; P. van Champaigne's Portraits of two Artists; Jacobus Delff's Portrait of a Man; Albrecht Dürer's Portrait of Erasmus; Anthonie van Dijck's Portraits of Charles I., King of England, Henrietta Maria, and Their Two Children; Gerbrand van den Eeckhout's Portrait of a Child; Robbert van Eysden's Portrait of J. F. Hoffman, Burgomaster of Rotterdam, 1845-66; Carel Fabritius's Portrait of a Man, dressed in black with open shirt showing his neck and chest; Govert Flinck's Portraits of Dirck Graswinckel, and his Sister, under a tree, in a landscape with ruins in the distance; George Gilles Haanen's Portrait of a Young Man; Frans Hals's Portrait of an Old Gentleman; Adriaen Hanneman's Portrait of Johan de Witt; Constantin Netscher's William III., King of England; Dionys van Nymegen's Willem van der Pot (1733) and Sara, his Wife (1733); Nicholaes Pieneman's William III., King of the Netherlands; David van der Plaes's Cornelis Tromp, and A Gentleman; Crispyn van den Queborn's Hartogh van Moerkerken; Jan van Scorel's A Young Man, and A Gentleman; Pieter van Slingelandt's Johannes van Crombrugge; Hendricus Turken's (1791-?) Margarethe Agnes de Vries; Adriaen Pietersz van de Venne's Prince Frederick Henry on Horseback with his Suite (en grisaille); and Abraham de Vries's A. A. Vroesen (1639), and An Old Woman (1644). Musscher's Portraits of Three Children, crowning the statue of a child with flowers, should also be noticed, as well as Jacob Gerritz Cuijp's Portraits of a General, a Lady of Distinction, and Three Children. The last, a boy and two little girls, are beautifully dressed, and are playing under the trees in a charming landscape, with several buildings, including a mill and a church-tower in the distance.
Good Pictures of Social Life by Palamedesz.—Anthonie Palamedesz (1601-73) was a painter of social life, corps-de-gardes, portraits, landscapes, and still life. His art belonged to the school of Frans Hals. The quality of his work is very unequal, but many of his interiors are full of life and color. He was such a good painter of figures in landscapes that his aid was much sought after by brother artists, notably B. van Bassen and A. de Lorme. In The Hague Gallery he has two works that show him at his best,—Music after Dinner, and Merry Company; also a Portrait of Martinus van Stavenisse, Knight of St. Michael.
An Interior of High Life, by Palamedesz.—The Rotterdam Gallery has An Interior of High Life by this artist. In an apartment hung with gilded leather several ladies and gentlemen are talking and playing musical instruments. In the foreground there is a lady dressed in blue with a light red tunic; next to her is a gentleman holding a guitar. On the left there is a lady with a sheet of music in her hand. She wears a white dress and a yellow tunic, and beside her is seated a gentleman. In the centre of the room there is a table covered with a red carpet, at which two persons are seated. Farther back in the room several groups of ladies and gentlemen are seen; and in the background a chimney-piece.
A Musical Reunion, by Van Deelen.—A Musical Reunion by Dirk van Deelen (1605-71) is a scene in high life. Six gentlemen and four ladies are in a hall paved with blue and white marble. A gentleman who turns his back to the spectator is seen in the foreground. He is dressed in black satin slashed with yellow, a black velvet cloak, yellow stockings, red-heeled shoes, lace collar, and large black hat. At the right a lady is leaning on a table with a red cloth. She wears a black-and-yellow flowered dress with a red tunic and large lace collar and sleeves. Near the table, on which are a guitar and some books of music, are four gentlemen, one of whom is without his hat. In the centre a lady dressed in green silk is playing the guitar, with her foot on a foot-warmer. Beside her stand a gentleman and two ladies, one of whom wears a black dress with a yellow satin tunic and holds a book of music. In the background on the right there is a bed with green curtains and an open door flanked with columns at each side. On the left are two tall windows, and on the wall hang two male portraits.
An Architectural Painting by Van Deelen.—The Peristyle of a Building, by this artist, shows his love for classic architecture. A stone bath with steps occupies the foreground, and two men enveloped in long cloaks talk with a woman who is seated on the steps. Near it is a statue of Hercules on a red marble pedestal. Many people are seen in a distant gallery through the columns.
A Delightful Conversation Piece, by Ochtervelt.—The Collation, by Jacob Ochtervelt, is one of those delightful "conversation pieces" so popular in the seventeenth century. A young woman in a yellow satin skirt and a red velvet jacket bordered with white fur is seated on a tabouret of green velvet with her back turned toward the spectator. Her left hand rests on her hip and her right holds a glass of wine. On her right is a table with an Oriental carpet upon which stands a flagon of wine. By its side is an officer in a blue costume and large blond wig, who is handing some oysters in a silver dish to the young woman.
A Ball, by François Francken, Junior.—François Vranckz, or Francken, the Younger (1581-1642), pupil of his father François Francken and a native of Antwerp, has here A Ball. In the foreground a gentleman and lady are beginning a dance surrounded by spectators; at the entrance of the hall on the right a servant comes in with wine, and farther down against the wall and under the windows is a long table served with refreshments. In the centre farther back two gentlemen are talking to a lady; on the left a platform with musicians; in the background a large chimney-piece between two windows.