Woman at a Mirror

Gerard ter Borch (II), c. 1650

A young boy holds up a mirror for the woman in the satin gown, who gazes upward at a far more plainly dressed woman. In the 17th century, mirrors symbolized vanity and the transience of life. This painting serves as a cautionary reminder: youth and beauty are fleeting. Ter Borch’s sister, Gesina, also an artist, probably modelled for both women, and his brother Moses for the boy.

Artwork typepainting
Object numberSK-A-4039
Dimensionsheight 36.5 cm x width 28.5 cm
Physical characteristicsoil on panel

Identification

Title(s)
Woman at a Mirror
Object type
Object number
SK-A-4039
Description
Vrouw voor een spiegel. Zittende jonge vrouw voor een jongen die een spiegel vasthoudt. Hiernaast een staande vrouw met hoofddoek. Vermoedelijk een portret van Gesina ter Borch.
Part of catalogue

Creation

Creation
painter: Gerard ter Borch (II)
Dating
c. 1650
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Material and technique

Physical description
oil on panel
Dimensions
height 36.5 cm x width 28.5 cm

This work is about

Person
Subject

Exhibitions

Acquisition and rights

Credit line
De Bruijn-van der Leeuw Bequest, Muri, Switzerland
Acquisition
bequest 1961
Copyright
Public domain
Provenance
…; ? sale, Edward Coxe (1748-1814, London), London (Peter Coxe), 23 April 1807 _sqq._, no. 32 (‘A Lady at her Toilette, with a female Attendant, and Boy waiting – grouped with great judgement, and finished with perfection and accuracy – the reflection in the Mirror happily accomplished’), £15 4s 6d, bought in;{Copy RKD.} ? sale, Edward Coxe et al. [section Edward Coxe], London (Mr Squibb), 13 (15) April 1815 _sqq._, no. 44 (‘A Lady at Her Toilet’), £16 16s;{Copy RKD.}…; ? sale, Easthoven, London (Mr Christie), 29 April 1826, no. 124, ? 22 gns (‘A Lady in a white satin dress, her back turned to the spectator, in conversation with her female attendant, while a servant boy holds a toilette glass, in which her face is pleasingly reflected; a very highly finished picture’);{Copy The National Gallery, London.}…; anonymous sale, Amsterdam (J. de Vries), 19 July 1826, no. 54 (‘TERBURGH, (G.) hoog 3 p. 4 d., breed 2 p. 6 d. [34 x 26 cm] Paneel. Eene Dame in wit satijn gekleed, zittende met hare rug gekeerd naar den beschouwer, aan eene tafel, waarachter een jongeling staat, eene spiegel voor haar in de handen houdende, en waarin haar aangezigt is voorgesteld, nevens haar staat eene burgervrouw, alle ter halver lijve’), fl. 260, to the dealer Jeronimo de Vries, Amsterdam;{Copy RKD.}…; anonymous sale, Rotterdam (A. Lamme), 26 April 1830, no. 68 (‘Eene Dame die haar toilet zit te maken, zeer prachtig in eene witte satijne met goud geborduurde japon gekleed, voor dezelve staat een spiegel waarin men haar gezigt ziet, verder eene kamenier en kamerjongen […] Pan., h. 33 d. br. 24 d. [33 x 24 cm]’), fl. 280, to the dealer Lamme;{Copy RMA.}…; anonymous collection, London, 1906;{F. Lugt et al., _Album de planches de l’exposition de maîtres hollandais du XVIIe siècle: Organisée par MM. Frederik Muller & Cie dans leurs galéries Doelenstraat 16-18 à Amsterdam à l’occasion du tercentenaire de Rembrandt_, exh. cat. Amsterdam 1906, p. 7, no. 16.}…; collection Sir George Donaldson (1845-1925), London;{C. Hofstede de Groot, _Beschreibendes und kritisches Verzeichnis der Werke der hervorragendsten holländischen Maler des XVII. Jahrhunderts_, V, Esslingen/Paris 1912, p. 25, no. 52.}…; ? Galerie C. Brunner, Paris, 1910, no. 53 (‘Jeune dame a sa toilette, composition de trois figures, bois, H 33 x L 25 cent, Collection de M.A.L.’);{Hofstede de Groot notes, RKD.}…; purchased from the dealer Muller, Amsterdam, by Albert Lehman, Paris, through the mediation of Frits Lugt, between 1906 and 1911;{Note RMA; _Exposition [rétrospective] des grands et petits maîtres hollandais du XVIIe siècle_, exh. cat. Paris (Salle du Jeu de Paume) 1911, p. 26, no. 150.} his sale, Paris (Galerie Georges Petit), 12 June 1925 _sqq._, no. 289, fr. 325,000, to the dealer Féral;{Copy RMA.}…; collection R. Schumann, Paris, after 1925;{Note RMA.}…; collection Étienne Nicolas (1870-1960), Paris, 1937;{Note RMA.} from whom, fl. 38,000, to Frederik Schmidt-Degener, for Isaac de Bruijn (1872-1953), Spiez and Muri, near Bern, June 1937;{Note RMA.} donated by Isaac de Bruijn and his wife, Johanna Geertruida van der Leeuw (1877-1960), Spiez and Muri, to the museum, 1949, but kept in usufruct;{Note RMA.} transferred to the museum, 1961
Remarks
Please note that this provenance was formulated with a special focus on provenance research for the years 1933-45 and could therefore be incomplete. There may be more (mostly earlier) provenance information known in the museum. In case this item has an uncertain or incomplete provenance for the years 1933-45, the Rijksmuseum welcomes information and assistance in the investigation and clarification of the provenance of all works during that era.