Two paintings by Govert Flinck that have not been on display for over a century are today added to the exhibition Ferdinand Bol and Govert Flinck – Rembrandt’s Master Pupils in the Amsterdam Museum. The two portraits were painted in 1654 and are in good condition.
The owner of the Govert Flinck paintings heard of the exhibition and offered to lend the portraits to the Amsterdam Museum for the remainder of the exhibition. Tom van der Molen, Curator of the Amsterdam Museum and Flinck specialist, examined the paintings and confirmed their authenticity and provenance. The paintings have been sold at an auction in 1894, after which they disappeared from the public view. As of today, the portraits of the couple can be seen in the exhibition until 18 February 2018.
The identity of the couple remains unknown. They might be Johan de Mauregnault (1607-1682), representative of the States of Zeeland, and his second wife Petronella van Panhuys (?-1687). The couple lived in Amsterdam in 1654 and the provenance of the paintings has been traced back to the De Mauregnault family. However, the commissioner of the portraits might also be related to the Court of The Hague. In 1654, Flinck painted a large canvas in Huis ten Bosch for Amalia van Solms, widow of Stadholder Frederik Hendrik. The couple must have had Orangist sympathies because the man is portrayed holding an orange. Flinck’s presence in The Hague might have been an opportunity for them to be portrayed by the artist.
Govert Flinck (1615-1660), Portrait of a man, possibly Johan de Mauregnault, 1654
Private Collection
Govert Flinck (1615-1660), Portrait of a woman, possibly Petronella van Panhuys, 1654
Private Collection