Een schrijfstertje van Vermeer. Jacob Oortman en de Dissiusveiling van 1696

Abstract

The writer traces the history of Vermeer's Mistress and servant, which was one of the 21 paintings by the artist that were sold at the famous Dissius auction in Amsterdam on May 16, 1696. The painting was sold at an anonymous auction in 1738 to Jacob Oortman, who kept it in his house on Singel, Amsterdam. An inventory of Oortman's belongings made up after his death indicates that the painting was hung in a side room on the main floor that was probably meant for receptions of a more or less intimate character.