Johannes Verspronck - Andries Stilte as a Standard Bearer [1640]

Johannes Verspronck - Andries Stilte as a Standard Bearer [1640], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

Johannes Verspronck's image of Andries Stilte is one of the most colourful and flamboyant Dutch portraits of the seventeenth century. Documentary sources tell us little about Stilte, but his unusual portrait offers many clues to his personality. Andries Stilte's brilliant blue sash and flag mark his recent election to the position of ensign, or standard-bearer, in Haarlem's Kloveniersdoelen, a civic militia company. A klovenier was a type of simple firearm. Portraits of individual ensigns are virtually unheard of in Dutch art, suggesting that this role held special significance for Stilte.

[Oil on canvas, 101.6 x 76.2 cm]