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Lot Essay
This elegant pair of portraits, depicting the Amsterdam merchant Jacob van der Merckt (1599-1653) and his wife, Petronella Witsen (1602-1676), are fine examples of Pot’s small-scale full-lengths, a type of portraiture in which he excelled. The sitters are identified by labels on the reverse of the panels, which are inscribed by their great-great-great granddaughter, M. van Hoven van der Voort. The inscription on identifying the female sitter reads: 'Dit is het portrait...Pet.../nella Witsen de vrouw van/Jacob van der Merckt' ('This is a portrait of Petronella Wilson wife of Jacob van der Merckt').
Based in Amsterdam, Jacob van der Merckt traded with Italy, the Levant and Greenland, and was the Regent of the Aalmoezenierweeshuis (Orphanage) in Amsterdam. He married Petronella in 1628 and these portraits may have been commissioned to commemorate that event. Following established portrait conventions, the sitters face one another while looking out at the viewer, the man appearing on the left and the woman on the right. The relatively stark interiors, consisting primarily of a richly draped table, upholstered chair and column, ensure that focus remains on the sumptuously attired subjects. This formula was clearly successful as Pot employed it in several other portraits, including a portrait of an unidentified woman of c. 1625-1635 in the Cleveland Museum of Art, and a second of c. 1635 in the Lichtenstein Museum, Vienna. The recurrence of the column suggests that it might have been in Pot's studio.
The extent of Pot's oeuvre had been little recognized until relatively recently, since until the late 19th century many of his portraits were erroneously ascribed to artists such as Anthonie Palamedesz, Thomas de Keyser, Jacob Duck and even Frans Hals. Pot held various public offices in his home town of Haarlem, among them warden of the St. Luke's Guild (four times over) and, in 1635, dean. He served as first lieutenant of the militiamen's guard and appeared at that rank in two of Frans Hals' magnificent group portraits, the Officers and Sergeants of the St. Hadrian Guard, of 1633, and the Officers of the St. George Civic Guard, of c. 1639, both in the Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem. Pot's reputation was not, however, limited to Haarlem. Indeed, he painted portraits of some of the most prominent political figures of the day. In 1620, he painted two versions of The Apotheosis of Prince William I, one of which was bought by the city of Haarlem for the stadhouder's Haarlem residence and the other by the Delft magistrates for the city's new Town Hall. Pot traveled to England in 1632 where he worked at the court of Charles I, painting at least two portraits of the King, one now in Paris, Musée du Louvre and another of the King together with Queen Henrietta Maria and the Prince of Wales in The Royal Collection (Buckingham Palace).
Based in Amsterdam, Jacob van der Merckt traded with Italy, the Levant and Greenland, and was the Regent of the Aalmoezenierweeshuis (Orphanage) in Amsterdam. He married Petronella in 1628 and these portraits may have been commissioned to commemorate that event. Following established portrait conventions, the sitters face one another while looking out at the viewer, the man appearing on the left and the woman on the right. The relatively stark interiors, consisting primarily of a richly draped table, upholstered chair and column, ensure that focus remains on the sumptuously attired subjects. This formula was clearly successful as Pot employed it in several other portraits, including a portrait of an unidentified woman of c. 1625-1635 in the Cleveland Museum of Art, and a second of c. 1635 in the Lichtenstein Museum, Vienna. The recurrence of the column suggests that it might have been in Pot's studio.
The extent of Pot's oeuvre had been little recognized until relatively recently, since until the late 19th century many of his portraits were erroneously ascribed to artists such as Anthonie Palamedesz, Thomas de Keyser, Jacob Duck and even Frans Hals. Pot held various public offices in his home town of Haarlem, among them warden of the St. Luke's Guild (four times over) and, in 1635, dean. He served as first lieutenant of the militiamen's guard and appeared at that rank in two of Frans Hals' magnificent group portraits, the Officers and Sergeants of the St. Hadrian Guard, of 1633, and the Officers of the St. George Civic Guard, of c. 1639, both in the Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem. Pot's reputation was not, however, limited to Haarlem. Indeed, he painted portraits of some of the most prominent political figures of the day. In 1620, he painted two versions of The Apotheosis of Prince William I, one of which was bought by the city of Haarlem for the stadhouder's Haarlem residence and the other by the Delft magistrates for the city's new Town Hall. Pot traveled to England in 1632 where he worked at the court of Charles I, painting at least two portraits of the King, one now in Paris, Musée du Louvre and another of the King together with Queen Henrietta Maria and the Prince of Wales in The Royal Collection (Buckingham Palace).