Portrait of Jan Pietersz. Sweelinck, Organist and Musician in Amsterdam
1624
Medium
Engraving; New Holl.s third state of three
Dimensions
Sheet (trimmed): 7 13/16 × 5 1/16 in. (19.8 × 12.9 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1951
Accession Number
51.501.6332
Tags
Art Historical Context
This engraving by Jan Muller, dated 1624, presents a dignified portrait of Jan Pietersz. Sweelinck, the renowned organist and composer who served Amsterdam’s Oude Kerk. Created during the Dutch Golden Age, the print captures the musician’s likeness with fine lines and careful shading, reflecting the period’s growing interest in commemorating cultural figures through accessible reproductive media. As the third state of three, it shows the refinements engravers made across successive printings to perfect details and tonal depth. Engravings like this one played a vital role in 17th-century Europ...
About the Artist
Jan Muller · 1571–1628
**Jan Harmensz. Muller (1571–1628)** Born in Amsterdam in 1571, Jan Harmensz. Muller grew up immersed in the world of printmaking, as the son of the prominent engraver, publisher, and book printer Harmen Jansz. Muller. He studied under his father, mastering the engraving trade within the family business, The Gilded Compasses. Around 1589, Muller joined the workshop of Hendrick Goltzius in Haarlem...