Attributed to David Bailly - Portrait of a Man, Possibly a Botanist[1641]

Attributed to David Bailly - Portrait of a Man, Possibly a Botanist [1641], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

This impressive portrait was once ascribed to Ferdinand Bol (1616–1680), until Sturla Gudlaugsson more plausibly proposed Bailly (Dutch, 1584 - 1657). It is compositionally similar to and consistent in quality and handling with two other works by Bailly: the Portrait of Anthony de Wale, Professor of Theology at the University of Leiden of 1636 (Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam) and the Portrait of an Unknown Professor or Pastor, signed and dated 1642 (Van Heeckeren van Wassenaer collection, Kasteel Twickel).

The identity of the sitter is not known. He could be a cleric or a professor (although his attire is not academic), an amateur of botany, a doctor, or an apothecary. The book, which shows two views of a narcissus, cannot be identified and is probably the artist's invention. This type of scholar portrait, which has sixteenth-century North Italian roots, was popular in the Netherlands during the first half of the seventeenth century and was employed for amateurs as well as professionals.

[Oil on wood, 83.8 x 62.2 cm]