Artwork
Man from the Island of Patmos
Man from the Island of Patmos is an oil painting by the Rococo painting artist Jean Baptiste Vanmour. It dates from 1718 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The painting is a portrait of a man identified as coming from the Island of Patmos, as indicated by its title and the depiction of a male figure. The work belongs to the portrait genre, but the sources do not provide further details about specific iconography, symbolism, or intended meaning beyond representing an individual from that locale.
Technique & Style
The composition focuses entirely on the sitter, adhering to the conventions of portraiture from this period.
Executed in 1718, this portrait by Jean Baptiste Vanmour utilizes oil paint applied to a canvas support. The work measures 39 cm in height and 30.5 cm in width. Created in Istanbul, the painting functions as a formal depiction of a male subject, consistent with the artist's documentary approach to figures within the Ottoman Empire. The composition focuses entirely on the sitter, adhering to the conventions of portraiture from this period.
History & Provenance
Created in 1718 by Jean Baptiste Vanmour, the work is an oil on canvas portrait depicting a man and was painted in Istanbul. The painting entered the collection of Cornelis Calkoen and subsequently Nicolaas Calkoen before being acquired by the Rijksmuseum, where it remains on display.
Man from the Island of Patmos, painted by Jean Baptiste Vanmour in 1718, is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. According to its provenance record, the work passed through several earlier Dutch collections, including the Directie van de Levantse handel en de Navigatie op de Middellandse Zee and the Koninklijk Kabinet van Zeldzaamheden, before entering the Nederlandsch Museum voor Geschiedenis en Kunst. Earlier ownership is traced to Cornelis Calkoen and Nicolaas Calkoen, Dutch officials associated with the Levant trade. No specific accession number or exhibition history is documented in the available sources.
Source IDs: [2]
Overview
Jean Baptiste Vanmour painted Man from the Island of Patios in 1718. Executed in oil on canvas, the work is part of the Rijksmuseum’s collection. It presents a solitary male figure rendered in the light‑and‑shade contrasts typical of early 18th‑century portraiture.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Artist
Jean Baptiste Vanmour or Van Mour (9 January 1671 – 22 January 1737) was a Flemish-French painter, remembered for his detailed portrayal of life in the Ottoman Empire during the Tulip Era and the rule of Sultan Ahmed III.
