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| The Van Moerkerken Family |
Artist:Gerard ter Borch the Younger (Dutch, Zwolle 1617–1681 Deventer)
Date:ca. 1653–54
Medium:Oil on wood
Dimensions:16 1/4 x 14 in. (41.3 x 35.6 cm)
Classification:Paintings
Credit Line:The Jack and Belle Linsky Collection, 1982
This charming family portrait represents the painter’s cousin Hartogh van Moerkerken (1622–1694), his first wife, Sibilla Nijkerken (1625–1665), and their son Philippus (1652–1688). The woman is placed unconventionally to her husband’s right, a position of honor most likely earned by providing the family with a male heir (as stressed by the family crests). The watch, usually signifying temperance or mortality, may in this context suggest continuity. The family lived near Delft, where in 1653 Ter Borch and his future emulator Johannes Vermeer witnessed a document together.
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