Portrait of a Woman
ca. 1520
Medium
Oil on wood
Dimensions
19 x 17 in. (48.3 x 43.2 cm)
Classification
Paintings
Department
European Paintings
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Friedsam Collection, Bequest of Michael Friedsam, 1931
Accession Number
32.100.47
Tags
Art Historical Context
Quinten Massys, a leading Flemish painter of the Northern Renaissance active in Antwerp around 1510–1530, crafted this *Portrait of a Woman* circa 1520. Rendered in oil on wood favored medium for its smooth surface that allowed for luminous glazes and intricate details—this intimate panel (19 x 17 in.) captures the sitter's poised elegance. Massys blended Italian Renaissance ideals of harmony with Northern precision, evident in his lifelike depiction of fabrics, jewelry, and facial features. The portrait exemplifies early 16th-century Antwerp's artistic flowering, where Massys helped pioneer ...