Two portraits by 17th-century master Frans Hals that have been in Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum since 1885 have finally been given their proper names, the result of historical detective work commissioned by the museum.
The 1637 portraits of Amsterdam Mayor Jan van de Poll and his wife Duifje van Gerwen were made by Hals at the time of their wedding, and at a relatively cheap price, since Hals was working not in Amsterdam but in cheaper Haarlem, and had a gap in his schedule at around the time.
Hals had been hired to paint a group portrait of one of Amsterdam’s militia companies, which would have been similar to Rembrandt’s Night Watch, depicting a different militia company. Hals offered a rate of 60 guilders per head, which they accepted, but then balked when they found he expected them to come to Haarlem to sit. After an exchange of legal letters and offers, the project lapsed, and van de Poll offered his commission.
For two centuries, the two portraits were identified as two other people, but have now been matched to other portraits of them with clear lineages. And, it’s not surprising that he and his wife would be willing to take the 25 km trip to Haarlem: Before moving to Amsterdam he had been a brewer there, and served as mayor of Haarlem.
