newly discovered paul;us.pdf

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A Newly Discovered Painting by Paulus Bor for the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa

Author(s): Erika Dolphin

Source: The Burlington Magazine , Vol. 149, No. 1247, Flemish and Dutch Art (Feb., 2007),

pp. 92-94Published by: Burlington Magazine Publications Ltd.

Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/20074719

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A newly discovered painting by Paulus Bor for the

National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa

by ERIKA DOLPHIN, National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa

the unpublished painting of the Annunciation of the death

of the Virgin by Paulus Bor (c. 1601-69; Fig.25) is an important

discovery for scholars of Dutch art and a significant addition

to the collection of the National Gallery of Canada, for which

it was acquired in 2003 .*

Born into a prominent and well-connected wealthy

Catholic family from Amersfoort near Utrecht ? and later

marrying into another ? Paulus Bor presumably did not

need to rely upon the sale of his paintings to make a living.

Certainly, the preponderance of obscure subjects in his small

uvre (fewer than thirty known works) reflects the interests

of an intellectual unconstrained by conventions.2 Because

Bor seldom signed or dated his pictures, they remain difficult

to attribute and date. However, the recent attribution to Bor

of the Annunciation of the death of the Virgin is convincing. 3

The painting is closely related to two other well-known

works by Bor, both thought to have been painted around

1640: The enchantress in the Metropolitan Museum of Art,

New York (Fig.26), and Cydippe with Acontius' apple in the

Pdjksmuseum, Amsterdam.4 All three paintings feature the

same figure types, costumes, sensuous rendition of fabrics,

monochrome backgrounds and shimmering palettes, and

were clearly painted by the same hand. The distinctive

pedestal ? with sphinx base and putti clambering up acanthus

leaves decorating the stem ? that appears in the Annunciation

of the death of the Virgin (where it supports a candle) also

appears in the Enchantress, which suggests that the pedestal

was a studio prop owned by the artist.

In 1623, at the age of twenty-two, Bor departed for a three

year sojourn in Rome, where he became a founding member

of the Schildersbent, or Bentvueghels, the society of Nether

landish artists in Rome. While there Bor fell under the sway

of Caravaggio and his followers, although he never favoured

a pronounced chiaroscuro. Instead, the cool light, elegant

rhythms and luminous quality of the fabrics found in Bor's

paintings are reminiscent of the work of Orazio Gentileschi

and the Utrecht Caravaggisti. The archangel's beautiful dal

matic recalls the lavish gold-embroidered brocades found in

paintings by Hendrick ter Brugghen and Abraham Bloemaert.

Other aspects of the Annunciation of the death of the Virgin, such

as the light coming from a single source and the overturned

chair that the Virgin uses as a prie-dieu, which juts provoca

tively into the space of the viewer, point to lessons learned in

Caravaggio's Rome.

In 1626 Bor returned to settle in his home town of

Amersfoort. There he had contact with prominent patrons,

probably very similar to those of Pieter de Grebber and other

Haarlem classicists. In 1638 - around the time Bor must have

been painting the Annunciation of the death of the Virgin ?Jacob

van Campen, also from Amersfoort, hired Bor and a team of

painters to help paint the decorations for Prince Frederick

Henry of Orange-Nassau's country palace at Honselaarsdijk

just south of The Hague (subsequently destroyed).5

The subject of Bor's newly discovered painting is here

identified as the second Annunciation, that is, the announce

ment by an archangel to Mary of her impending death,6 and

not the more often-painted scene of the Archangel Gabriel

informing the Virgin that she will bear a son named Jesus.

Unlike the first Annunciation, the second does not appear in

the Bible and is only known from the Apocrypha.

The Annunciation of the death of the Virgin is a relatively

rare subject in Western art. Because of the Eucharistie signifi

cance of the incarnation of Christ, the first Annunciation is a

more appropriate and popular subject for altarpieces. One of

the few examples of the subject dating from the seventeenth

century is a work by Samuel van Hoogstraten (Fig.27). Other

wise, the iconography of the second Annunciation is known

primarily from earlier Italian and French examples. It is often

difficult to distinguish this second one from that of Gabriel's

first Annunciation, and most scholars rely upon the presence of

the palm branch in the hand of the archangel, as described in

Jacopo da Voragine's Golden Legend. However, there are too

many exceptions to the rule to make the palm branch a reliable

determining factor. Even a brief survey of the iconography

reveals instances of Gabriel in the first Annunciation holding a

palm branch instead of the more common lily or baton, while

the archangel of the second Annunciation sometimes holds

something other than a palm. Regardless of any attribute the

archangel might or might not hold in paintings of the first

Annunciation, he usually raises a hand, pointing with one or

' The painting was sold at Sotheby's, Amsterdam, 14th May 2002, lot 48. The

National Gallery of Canada purchased the work from Hall & Knight Ltd., New

York. Remarkably, the painting is unlined, a feature that has allowed Stephen Gritt,

Chief of the Conservation and Restoration Laboratory at the National Gallery of

Canada, to extract a considerable amount of information from the canvas regarding

Bor's technique, a subject little discussed in the literature. The canvas is made from

two pieces of finen sewn together, with the seam running horizontally across the

middle. Examination by infra-red reflectography shows no evidence of a careful

laying out of the design, or of a transfer of an existing drawing. The only penti

mento is found in the location of the Angel's head, which has been shifted lower

and to the right. The overall impression is of a very direct, loose painting technique,

allowing for an element of spontaneity.

2 For Bor's biography, see the entry by MJ. Bok in A. Blankert and LJ. Slatkes,

eds.: exh. cat. Holl?ndische Malerei in neuem Licht: Hendrick ter Brugghen und seine

Zeitgenossen, Utrecht (Centraal Museum) and Braunschweig (Herzog Anton

Ulrich-Museum) 1987, pp.224?26. For bis uvre, see E. Plietzsch: 'Paulus Bor',

Jahrbuch der k?niglich Preussischen Kunstsammlungen 37 (1916), pp. 105?15, who lists a

total of fourteen works, and J.W. von Moltke: 'Die Gem?lde des Paulus Bor von

Amersfoort', Westfalen. Hefte f?r Geschichte, Kunst und Volkskunde 55/1?2 (1977),

pp. 158?61, who fists twenty-six paintings.

92 FEBRUARY 2007 CXLIX THE BURLINGTON MAGAZINE



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A NEWLY DISCOVERED PAINTING BY PAULUS BOR FOR THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF CANADA OTTAWA

25- Annunciation of the death of the Virgin, by Paulus Bor.

ci635-40. Canvas, 203.2 by 157.5 cm.

(National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa).

more fingers in an oratorical gesture of address. Rarely, if ever,

does Gabriel touch the Virgin as the archangel does in Bor's

painting, although he sometimes hands over the lily. Bor's

angel grasps Mary's wrist in a gentle manner that is fully in

keeping with the consoling and ministering attitude of the

angel reassuring the Virgin, who, as Vor?gine describes, is

afraid of death.

Additional evidence in Bor's painting that points towards

an Annunciation of the death of the Virgin is the fact that

Mary is clearly in her middle years, and not the young girl we

usually find in representations of the first Annunciation. She

also wears black, the colour of mourning and widowhood.

Bor has not included the Holy Spirit or God the Father, an

essential element in the incarnation, and one that is usually

present in the first Annunciation. The burning candle and the

snuffer placed precariously on the edge of the candlestick

are ubiquitous symbols of mortality.7 Lilies and roses are

traditional attributes of the Virgin, but Bor's remarkable

conception of flowers streaming down in a shaft of light from

heaven to dramatic decorative effect may refer here to the

particular moment in the apocryphal story when, after the

death and Assumption of the Virgin, the apostles discover her

3 While at Sotheby's, the painting was attributed to Bor by Paul Huys Janssen (see

note i above). Huys Janssen has since confirmed his attribution via e-mail to David

Franklin (29th September 2003) of the National Gallery of Canada. The attribution

was also confirmed by LJ. Slatkes (letter, ist July 2003).

4 Date suggested by H.E.C. Mazur-Contamine: 'Twee toveraressen van Paulus

Bor', Bulletin van het Rijksmuseum 29 (1981), pp.3?8. But as J. Giltaij observed,

dating Bor's paintings must remain speculative; see his catalogue entry on Cydippe

with Acontius' apple in A. Blankert et. al: exh. cat. Dutch classicism in seventeenth

century painting, Rotterdam (Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen) and Frankfurt

(St?delsches Kunstinstitut) 1999, p. 146, no.20. Mazur-Contamine identifies the

Metropolitan painting as Medea mourning over the desertion of Jason.

s According to surviving accounts the decoration was painted by Pieter de Greb

ber of Haarlem and Paulus Bor of Amersfoort; see D.P. Snoep: 'Honselaersdijk,

Restauraties Op Papier', Oud Holland 84 (1969), pp.270?94.

6 The archangel in the second Annunciation is sometimes identified as Michael,

but the apocryphal sources do not specify the angel's name.

7 The practice of presenting burning tapers to the dying is often present in

depictions of the Dormition of the Virgin.

THF BURLINGTON MAGAZINE CXLIX FEBRUARY 2007 93



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A NEWLY DISCOVERED PAINTING BY PAULUS BOR FOR THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF CANADA, OTTAWA

26. The

enchantress,

by Paulus

Bor.

ci 640.

Canvas,

155.6 by

112.4 cm.

Metro

politan

Museum of

Art, New

York).

empty tomb filled with flowers. These latter could also

represent the incorruptibility ? commonly associated with

the sweet smell of flowers ? of her physical body.8 As such the

flowers are fitting attributes for the moments that lead to

Mary's Assumption, which is understood by the faithful as

proof of Christ's promise of bodily resurrection. Admittedly,

without the attribute of the palm branch, the subject of Bor's

painting remains somewhat ambiguous. But unconventional

and enigmatic iconography is a hallmark of the artist's uvre;

the subjects of some of his paintings are so arcane that Bor is

the only painter known to have represented them.9

The large size and low view point of the Annunciation of the

death of the Virgin suggest it could have been an altarpiece.

Since Bor's home town of Amersfoort lay within the bishop

ric of Utrecht, it is conceivable he provided paintings for

clandestine Catholic churches in Utrecht's parishes given that

he, too, was a Catholic. Admittedly, the subject is a curious

choice for an altarpiece, but the variety of subjects for altar

pieces was much wider during the first part of the century

than it was towards the end.10 There are several examples of

clandestine churches owning sets of altarpieces that could be

displayed in rotation over the course of the liturgical year.

The church of Maria Minor (or Achter Clarenburch) in

Utrecht owned six such altarpieces, and the B?guinage church

27- Annunciation of the death of the Virgin, by Samuel van

Hoogstraten. c.1670. Canvas, 66 by 52.7 cm. (Metropolitan

Museum of Art, New York).

in Amsterdam, HH. Joannes en Ursula, owned four by Claes

Moeyaert (Crucifixion, Adoration of the shepherds, Assumption of

the Virgin and St Ursula).11 In such situations, some of the

paintings would be used on a more regular basis, while others

were used for special occasions, such as the church's saint day

or the Feast of the Assumption. Bor's Annunciation of the death

of the Virgin could easily have functioned in such a manner.

The subject would have been particularly apt for female

congregations, such as the societies of lay sisters that existed in

the northern Netherlands. Their members, known as klopjes,

or 'spiritual virgins', were unmarried women who dedicated

their lives to the service of the church. Similar to nuns, they

took oaths of obedience and chastity. They worked in their

parishes visiting the sick, catechising children, keeping

the churches clean and decorated and singing at services, and

they became indispensable to the functioning of Catholic

hidden churches.12 A painting such as Bor's, portraying the

announcement of Mary's imminent but 'good' death, would

have been particularly relevant for such women. The Virgin's

exemplary life provided a worthy model to follow, and her

death and Assumption promised to the faithful the hope of

resurrection. It is conceivable that Bor's painting was donated

by such a spiritual virgin to the church she supported.13 This

might also explain the overtly female cast of the archangel.

s For which see Jacopo da Vor?gine: The Golden Legend, ed. G. Ryan and H.

Ripperger, New York 1969, p.456.

9 E.g. Pretiose, Donju?n, and the gypsy woman Maiombe (Centraal Museum, Utrecht),

whose subject is taken from Jacob Cats's Het Spaens heydinnetje (1637); see A. Blankert

et. al, op. cit. (note 4), p. 146 and fig.2ib.

10 E-mail (22nd December 2005) from Xander van Eck, whom I wish to thank for

sharing his knowledge of clandestine churches and klopjes in the Dutch Republic, and

for bringing the Moeyaert paintings mentioned below to my attention.

1 ' For the painting for the church of Maria Minor in Utrecht, see B.J. Kaplan:

'Confessionalism and its limits: religion in Utrecht, 1600-1650', in J.A. Spicer and

L.F. Orr, eds.: exh. cat. Masters of Light: Dutch Painting in Utrecht during the Golden Age,

San Francisco (Fine Arts Museums), Baltimore (Walters Art Gallery) and London

(National Gallery) 1997-98, p.66. For Moeyaert's painting for the B?guinage church

in Amsterdam, see X. van Eck: 'The Artist's Religion: Paintings Commissioned for

Clandestine Churches in the Northern Netherlands, 1600-1800', Simiolus 27 (1999),

pp.74-76, esp. p.88; and R. Schillemans: 'Zeventiende- en vroeg achttiende-eeuwse

wisselaltaarstukken in de Amsterdamse Begijnhofkerk', De zeventiende eeuw 15 (1999),

pp.204-221, esp. p.220.

'- Kaplan, op. cit. (note 11), p.65.

'* This was suggested to me by Xander van Eck.

94 FEBRUARY 2007 CXLIX THE BURLINGTON MAGAZINE


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