Lot 1051 Dα

The present work depicts an as yet unidentified young man in a half-figure view. His sumptuous and well tailored clothing indicates that he was presumably a member of a high-ranking patrician family in his home town, probably Amsterdam. The loosely pleated white ruff contrasts starkly against the sober elegance of the black cloth. The work's author was not only able to skilfully render the transparent folds of the ruff but also evoke the finest nuances of the deep black of the sitter's clothing.

The artist utilises the light illuminating the work from the left to precisely render the youth's features with delicate brushstrokes and noticably vivid pink hues. His slightly open mouth and the way his gaze firmly fixes the observer provide the figure with a life-like aura that complements and softens the imposing character of the portrait. Whilst the sitter's right hand grasps the fabric of his clothing, the left hand is partially concealed by it, accentuating the masterfully foreshortened depiction of the thumb.

Since this portrait of a young man entered the possession of the Galerie van Diemen in 1928 it has been considered to be an authentic work by the Amsterdam painter Thomas de Keyser. An attribution to Werner van den Valckert was suggested for a short period before the then director of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam Pieter J. J. van Thiel returned the work to Thomas de Keyser in 1983 in his essay in "Oud Holland". Although in recent years Ann Jensen Adams and Rudi Ekkart have once again doubted the portrait's authenticity, the RKD in The Hague still lists it as "attributed to Thomas de Keyser" (RKD no. 10638).

In the first third of the 17th century, even before the arrival of Rembrandt, Thomas de Keyser was one of the leading portraitists in Amsterdam alongside Werner van den Valckert, Nicolaes Eliasz, called Pickenoy, and Cornelis van de Voort. The latter is thought to have been his teacher, although this is not archivally documented. De Keyser was the son of the architect and sculptor Hendrik de Keyser, who was responsible for the Amsterdam stock exchange and the mausoleum of William of Orange in Delft.

His father's profession ensured that Thomas de Keyser was privy to a two year apprenticeship as a stonemason, and he was accepted as such by the Amsterdam guild of Saint Luke in 1622. Despite this, he appears to have focused more on painting. Alongside a few biblical narratives and public commissions like "Odysseus and Nausicaa" for the newly constructed city hall of Amsterdam, his oeuvre consists almost entirely of portraits.

This image of a young man in a white ruff was housed for a short time in the collection of the Berlin textile merchant Richard Semmel (1875-1950). The Jewish businessman mainly collected paintings by 17th century Dutch masters alongside works by the French Impressionists and Post-Impressionists. Richard Semmel went into exile in Amsterdam following the NSDAP's rise to power. He later settled in New York, where he passed away in 1950. This portrait became property of the Dutch state in 1946 and was housed in the museum of Gouda for several years before being restituted to the rightful heirs of Richard Semmel in 2009.