Artwork
Portrait of Jan Valckenburgh and an Enslaved Servant
Portrait of Jan Valckenburgh and an Enslaved Servant is an unspecified painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Daniel Vertangen. It dates from 1660 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
About this work
Overview
This 17th-century painting depicts two men standing together in a Dutch harbor, one a high-ranking official and the other an enslaved servant.
Subject & Meaning
The official, Jan Valckenburgh, was twice director-general of Elmina, a Dutch slave-trading fort in West Africa. The younger man behind him was likely brought to Elmina to be sold into slavery, highlighting the brutal history of the Dutch involvement in the transatlantic slave trade.
Technique & Style
The painting presents a juxtaposition of the two figures, with Valckenburgh dressed in formal attire holding a letter, while the enslaved servant stands behind him in simpler clothing.
Context
The Dutch West India Company, under which Valckenburgh operated, played a significant role in organizing the transatlantic slave trade, with the Dutch transporting hundreds of thousands of Africans to the Americas and the Caribbean.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Portrait of Johan van Beaumont. Colonel in the Holland guards and commander of Den Briel
Untitled
Ludvig VI, 1630-78, lantgreve av Hessen-Darmstadt
Portrait of a Captain
Mattias de' Medici
Portrait of Jan-Filips van Boonem, Dean of the Guild of St. George in Bruges
Portrait of Cornelis de Witt (1623-72), Burgomaster of Dordrecht and lord lieutenant of Putten
Portrait of an officer
Portrait of Stadholder Willem Frederik (1613- 1664)
Portrait of Willem Joseph Baron van Ghent (1626-72), vice-admiral