Portrait of a lady, said to be Princess Sybille of Cleves, half-length, wearing a black costume, gold chain and an elaborate headdress, holding a book and rose bud

Details

Attributed to Barthel Bruyn I (Wesel 1493-1555 Cologne)
Portrait of a lady, said to be Princess Sybille of Cleves, half-length, wearing a black costume, gold chain and an elaborate headdress, holding a book and rose bud
oil on panel, laid down to panel, shaped top
19 x 14 in. (48.1 x 35.5 cm.)

Provenance

[Property of a Private Collector]; Christie's, New York, 4 April 1990, lot 232, as 'Barthel Bruyn, the Elder', where acquired by the present owner.

Lot Essay

Princess Sybille of Cleves, the eldest daughter of Johann III, Duke of Cleves and Count of Mark, married John Frederick I, later Elector of Saxony, in 1527. Several portraits of her by Lucas Cranach I are known, all with similar features, including the almond-shaped face, high forehead, and fine eyebrows evident in this painting.

In a certificate dated Berlin, 13 August 1931, Max Friedlander described the painting as by Barthel Bruyn and suggested a date of circa 1540.

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