Getting started with the collection:
The Sick Woman
Jan Havicksz Steen (c. 1625–1679), oil on canvas, c. 1663–1666
Faint from fever, the young woman rests her head on a pillow. Is she perhaps lovesick? Is she pregnant? To find out, a quack would put a strip of his patient’s clothing in a brazier to smoulder – the scent would disclose her secret. Jan Steen here presents such a charlatan making a diagnosis. His old-fashioned attire characterizes him as a comic character.
- Artwork typepainting
- Object numberSK-C-230
- Dimensionsheight 76 cm x width 63.5 cm