Who painted Portrait of a Woman?

Portrait of a Woman was painted by Rembrandt van Rijn in 1633-01-01.

Where can I see Portrait of a Woman?

Portrait of a Woman is held by Metropolitan Museum of Art.

What movement is Portrait of a Woman?

Portrait of a Woman is associated with Dutch Golden Age.

Can I buy a print of Portrait of a Woman?

Museum-quality prints of Portrait of a Woman are available made-to-order from Artifact World Gallery.

Artwork

Portrait of a Woman

Rembrandt van Rijn , 1633

Portrait of a Woman is an oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Rembrandt van Rijn. It dates from 1633 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

About this work

Subject & Meaning

The sitter’s name is unknown; the work was created in 1633 by Rembrandt and entered the Metropolitan Museum of Art through the Benjamin Altman bequest.

The painting presents an unidentified woman rendered in an oval format typical of 17th‑century Amsterdam portraiture. She wears a millstone collar and a diadem‑capped headdress, elements that signal contemporary fashion and possibly modest virtue. The sitter’s name is unknown; the work was created in 1633 by Rembrandt and entered the Metropolitan Museum of Art through the Benjamin Altman bequest.

Its composition, with a dark background and frontal gaze, emphasizes a straightforward likeness rather than narrative symbolism, reflecting the status of the subject within her social context.

Technique & Style

The work is executed in oil on a rectangular oak panel, originally oval in format measuring roughly 67.9 × 50.2 cm. Rembrandt applied thin, layered brushwork to render a half‑length, full‑face portrait; the sitter is positioned before a dark ground with light falling from the left, emphasizing the white cap and delicate ruff. The surface bears the artist’s signature “Rembrandt f. 1633” in the upper left, and the panel’s oval shape was later documented by Hofstede de Groot.

The painting’s condition remains stable, with the oak support intact and the varnish largely original, preserving the chiaroscuro modeling characteristic of the artist’s 1630s portraiture.

History & Provenance

Portrait of a Woman was painted by Rembrandt in 1633, signed "Rembrandt f. 1633" on an oval oak panel. The identity of the sitter is unknown, and no commission is recorded.

The painting entered the art market in the nineteenth century, passing through several private collections. By the time it was documented by Hofstede de Groot in 1914, it belonged to Prince Radziwill at the castle of Nieswiz in Lithuania. It was later sold at the Lachnicki sale in Paris on June 15, 1867, and subsequently entered the Lachnicki collection in Warsaw.

The work then passed to the dealer F. Kleinberger in Paris before being acquired by the New York collector Benjamin Altman. Altman bequeathed the painting, along with his collection as a whole, to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1913, where it remains today.

The painting is held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, with the accession number 14.40.611 as part of the Benjamin Altman bequest of 1913. It was previously in the collection of Prince Radziwiłł of Nieswież, Lithuania, before passing through the Lachnicki sale in Paris on 15 June 1867 and the Parisian dealer F. Kleinberger. The work has not been publicly exhibited outside the museum’s permanent displays since entering the Altman collection.

Overview

This oil painting, titled Portrait of a Woman, was created by Rembrandt in 1633. It presents a singular female figure, captured with the artist's characteristic attention to detail and psychological depth. The work is currently housed in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, representing a significant example of Dutch Golden Age portraiture.