The States General

THE RESTORATION OF THE EARLIEST REPRESENTATION OF THE DUTCH PARLIAMENT PART 1

Digital restoration

In 2024, I was approached regarding a painting from the early 17th century. The painting, a group portrait, is considered the earliest known depiction of “The States General” of the Netherlands — what we now usually call Parliament. It appeared dark and brown upon arrival and was difficult to assess. A ‘digital restoration’ was necessary to better visualize the scene before any treatment could begin.

Digital correction by Ralph Kämena

The Scene

The central subject of the painting is a group portrait of members of parliament sitting at a long table. The table has a striking green cloth. On it lie letters, even one with a red wax seal. The book with a white parchment cover contains the resolutions for the meeting. The gentlemen are well dressed in black cloth coats, white millstone collars and wear a black hat. Some even have fur collars. One person in the middle wears a different collar and he is the only one who seems to look at the viewer. This is Prince Maurits . On the left of the picture, separately at a table, sits the clerk , writing. A pile of books with the written resolutions in them lies on the table and there is an inkwell next to it. On the right of the picture, a figure enters the room, he has taken off his hat. None of the gentlemen seem to pay attention to this person. Who is this figure? 

Right in front of him, directly behind the chairs, lies a white/brown spotted dog on the wooden floor. The space is also special, because paintings on canvas have been applied to the walls everywhere. It is not entirely clear what is depicted on them. Is it a map, Biblical scenes, landscapes. The space has a high beamed ceiling to which two black ropes are connected to poles. What could they be for?

Technique

The painting, oil on canvas, was created in the first half of the 17th century, dimensions 77.5 x 101.5 cm. It was lined with a second canvas using an unknown adhesive technique and is stretched on a 19th-century strainer frame.

Infrared photography

First, the painting of the States General was photographed with infrared photography, performed by René Gerritsen.

Infrared photography is a non-destructive technique used to examine paintings and works of art and detect hidden features beneath the top layers, such as underdrawings and underpaintings.

Underdrawing

As can be seen in the images above, the parliamentarians in the final representation are rendered in a similar way to the underpainting. However, the perspective of the chairs has changed, which can be clearly seen in the legs of the right chair. 

The Clerk’s table was also modified at a later stage. And if you look closely you can see the line of the hat brim running through the face. And the writing right arm was also modified. The first setup is lower. At the long table, the tip of the foot of the first man is painted through the table leg. 

The photo shows that the basic shapes of the space and the plank floor have been set up in this composition from the beginning. The underpainting of the dog has been applied to the plank floor, the perspective lines of the seam run through the dog. The edge of the table has also been corrected during painting. The paint stroke and direction of the primer are clearly visible. Also a large amount of overpainting and loss of paint at the edges.

 I will keep you updated in a series of posts on the various steps and findings of this exciting restoration process!