The Messenger

Terborch worked in various Dutch cities and traveled to England, Italy, and Spain, enriching his work with impressions and influences. In the domestic genre scenes of the 1650s and 1660s that form the best part of his legacy, there is no pronounced moralising. On the contrary, the characters, who are often shown in profile or from behind, are engaged in a silent dialogue of looks that allows us only to guess at the meaning of the event.