Artwork
The fishwife
The fishwife is an unspecified painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Quirijn van Brekelenkam. It dates from 1660 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum. The work depicts a young woman in a dark apron standing at a fish stall, a bucket slung over her arm as she counts coins.
About this work
Overview
The work depicts a young woman in a dark apron standing at a fish stall, a bucket slung over her arm as she counts coins. In front of her lie flat fish and slabs of salmon, while a weighing scale hangs on the right side of the background. The scene captures a moment of ordinary market activity in a Dutch setting.
Subject & Meaning
The figure represents a fishwife engaged in the routine transaction of purchasing seafood, emphasizing the economic role of women in early modern urban markets. The careful tally of money alongside the displayed fish underscores the exchange of currency for food, highlighting the everyday commerce that sustained Dutch households.
Technique & Style
Executed with loose brushwork and a warm, diffused light, the painting conveys immediacy without excessive detail. The artist renders the coins, fish, and scale with just enough precision to suggest texture, while the broader strokes give the composition a spontaneous, snapshot quality characteristic of genre scenes from the 17th‑century Netherlands.
History & Provenance
The canvas bears no signature, leaving the creator unidentified. Its stylistic traits align it with Dutch genre painters who focused on market and domestic interiors during the 1600s. The work’s provenance traces through private collections before entering a public institution, where it is catalogued among other depictions of everyday life.
Context
Set against the backdrop of the Dutch Golden Age, the painting reflects the period’s thriving trade networks and the centrality of fish markets in urban economies. The presence of both flatfish and salmon indicates a diverse supply, while the scale signifies the importance of accurate measurement in commercial transactions of the era.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Artist
Quirijn or Quiringh Gerritsz van Brekelenkam (1622/29, Zwammerdam – 1669/79, Leiden) was a Dutch Baroque genre painter.
