A Nobleman's Picture Gallery
by BOSSCHE, Balthasar van den, Oil on canvas, 90 x 76 cm
The second half of the seventeenth century saw the rise of connoisseurship in the modern sense of the word. In the present painting, van den Bossche’s nobleman is shown surrounded by objects which infer his intellect and knowledge of art. Around him, attendant figures hang on his every word as he apparently holds forth.